Kidnapped
by absolong
Summary: The life of a young man, tortured mentally by his past monsters. TKB x RB x YB (Hints of Mobiumshipping YY x YM x Atem in later chapters, may develop) Tw: Mentions of Rape in later chapters, please be wary. Abuse of certain characters, no death.
1. Of Spirits and Freedom

He was eight, the first time he heard the voice of the spirit. Eight years old, his father had given him The Millennium Ring, more for safe keeping than anything else. However, the darkness started sweeping through the young boy. At first he took no notice of the whispers, just sounds and noises, he had friends to play with, adventures to go on. He ran around the school, laughing and joking. It had been a long time since that a smile graced his lips.  
He was eight, when his father was in a car crash, killed him instantly. He was eight, when he was forced onto the plane, and dragged over to Japan to live with his Aunt and Uncle. The darkness grew stronger with the situation. He was forced into isolation. He could not understand much of the language. The children bullied him for his accent. His Uncle and Aunt were strict and firm. Kind, of course, but they had rules he had to get used to. And for a boy with no friends, rules made him feel even more isolated.

He was eight, when he first heard The Spirit's voice.

The Spirit killed someone when he was nine.

It was the first of many years of torture, when he was ten, The Spirit killed his pet goldfish. Ryou vowed never to get another animal.  
When he was fifteen, The Spirit killed his Aunt and Uncle.

_They deserved it_ He would say, a scowl on his face. _They wanted you to move to a private school. You don't need them, you have me_  
And then, he met Yuugi and his friends.

It was during the first duel that The Spirit took control of his body while he was conscious. Though they had no idea why The Spirit hated Yuugi so much. Until Yuugi's dark side appeared.  
The hatred Ryou felt from The Spirit that day, locked in the soul room while they duelled. He could remember that, but also the fear. The suffocating fear of Yuugi's dark side.

However, during the duel against Yuugi's dark side, and his own. The hatred grew. He became a prisoner in the soul room more and more. When he was in control of his body, he was in severe pain, or hunger. There had been no care in looking after his body. The Spirit deemed him as a vessel, and nothing more.  
When The Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle finally won against The Spirit of the Ring, it had been eleven years. Eleven years of whispers, cruel words and dark thoughts. Eleven years since he felt safe, and at peace. He was nineteen. Nineteen years old, and missed so much.

Though he was intelligent, he had never received a proper education. Though he had friends, he had never really spoken to anyone. He didn't know how to act, didn't know what to do. He was hostile at first, scared of everything. He hated living alone, hated being on his own.  
Then Yuugi came to his aid. Him and his friends were moving to their own apartment. And they wanted Ryou to join them. Finally, he felt accepted. And for three years he rebuilt his life.

He made new friends easily, he worked hard in both his jobs. Mainly to keep himself occupied, so he wouldn't think of the Spirits that haunted his nightmares. Brought fear to his every, waking moment.

When he was twenty one, The Spirit returned.  
No one knew how it happened. First, The Spirit of the Puzzle, who called himself Yami, appeared outside their apartment. With The Pharaoh.  
They said it was Shadow Magic, explained that a spell must have forced them back to the world of the living.  
Two days later, Ryou saw The Spirit again.

It was just a glance, out of the corner of his eye. White hair, crimson eyes.  
When he turned to look fully, there was nothing. He scolded himself, he was getting paranoid. Atemu and Yami returning didn't mean The Spirit would be back.  
However he was wrong. 


	2. You've got a friend in me

Ryou sighed, as he heard someone down the stairs, getting ready for the day ahead. It was early still, five in the morning, and the whitette had trouble sleeping. His dreams were plagued with terror, and nightmares for the past few weeks, ever since the Pharaoh and the Spirit of the Puzzle had returned.

He had stumbled over telling the others...he was scared he was going psychotic, if they would say it was all in his mind...and ignore him. He didn't want that, he didn't want the others to think he was crazy...as it being all in his head, it wasn't. He was sure it wasn't.

Taking a deep breath, he walked quietly down the stairs.

"Yuugi wait" Came Ryou's voice as he saw the other prepare to leave for work, he was so glad it was Yuugi, and not Atemu...or Yami.

Yuugi had received a fantastic opportunity working with Kaiba, to develop Duel Monsters further. The young man was an amazing strategist, and Kaiba had jumped on that the minute he had left school, bribing him with world travel and lots of competitions. His fame from winning the championships when he was younger, had given Kaiba a new figurehead, and in return for a very high salary, and flexible hours, it was the best job Yuugi was going to be offered, even if he left for university, and it was doing what he loved.

Yuugi glanced up at the whitette, as he sorted his papers on the table in front of him.

"Ryou, it's still early. Don't you have University later?" Always so observant, but so mature, Yuugi had not changed much though. He was still the kind hearted soul that would help anyone and everyone with their problems, setting himself on fire to keep others warm, but he was more level headed, and a lot calmer. Now that The Pharaoh, and...The Spirit? Had returned, he had seemed a lot happier, a lot less stressed. It was nice.

"I...I have a problem, I need to talk to you about." It was only then he noticed Atemu, out of the corner of his eye coming from the kitchen with a hot cup of coffee. Yami was probably still asleep, not that it mattered. Talking to any of the three might bring an over reaction, but it was happening far too often, he didn't think it was his imagination anymore.

"Good morning Atemu, how are you?" Ryou said, giving a soft smile.

Atemu smiled in return.

"Tired, I am not able to adjust to sleeping yet. Yami has taken to it like a fish to water. But, I made a habit of waking up early. It will take some time"

Ryou nodded, understandable. Atemu was a Pharaoh, and a Spirit, no doubt he had to wake up early because of his duties, or not sleep at all in the afterlife.

"Anyway, Ryou, you had something to ask me? I don't mean to rush, but Seto is sending a car, I keep telling him I can take public transport, but he wont have it apparently"

"Oh yes, sorry. I...I keep seeing...the Spirit of the Ring. Out of the corner of my eye." Atemu raised an eyebrow, and Yuugi put down the papers.

"At first...!" He stuttered, raising his hands. "At...first I thought it was in my imagination. You know, with Atemu and Yami returning, I was paranoid...thinking 'oh it's just me overthinking'. But...but it is happening more and more. At first I would only see glances of him, it's getting frequent, not just glances either...he lingers, he knows I can see him" Yuugi glanced up at Atemu, before standing to get the phone.

"W...what are you...?"

"I'm going to call Kaiba, he needs to give me some time off anyway. I am not abandoning you during this Ryou. If you think he has returned, then this is serious. The Spirit of the Ring...Akefia was his name?" He turned to Atemu who gave a soft nod.

"Tormented you enough when you were younger. Remember the sleepless nights we helped you through? If he is back, then there is no way in hell I'm letting him torment you again, I don't care if you think it is part of your imagination. We should at least take it seriously. If Yami and Atemu are back, there is a chance."

Ryou felt a swell of happiness. It was...wonderful, to know that Yuugi at least, felt so much care for him. It had been so long...so so long since he had, been so happy, and now that he was...well he didn't want to lose this feeling. He didn't want to lose this safety, his home.

Atemu took a step forward, placing his hand on Ryou's shoulder.

"Me and Yami, were not here for your rehabilitation. I can only imagine what the Thief put you through was a nightmare. It was all mine...and my fathers fault for making him so angry, so vengeful, and for that I apologize. We will stand by your side as well Ryou, whatever your decision. You, know the Spirit of the Ring better than anyone, of course. He possessed you for so long"

Yuugi hung up the phone with a smirk.

"He is not happy, and I had to promise to head to America for a month, but he is giving me the time off. I didn't tell him what it was for. He still doesn't believe. Which should be expected, a lot of things happened, I imagine he likes to push it to the back of his mind. I do still need to go in this week however, we have a large workload."

Ryou gave Yuugi a tight hug.

"Thank you, thank you so much for believing me. I mean...I thought I was paranoid at first, but I needed to tell someone. I don't want to suffer from him any more. I am older, I know what torture he can put me through. I have friends now, he wont...wont manipulate me so easily any more."

Atemu took another sip of coffee, sitting down.

"So, if you do think he is back. What will he be planning? Zorc was defeated, as the Spirit had been. There is no way he can regain the items, those have no power any more. Ishizu was kind enough to show them to me after I returned. It seems like they are just regular, gold artefacts."

Ryou gave a soft shrug, dropping in one of the chairs.

"I was trying to think of that myself. If the point of The Spirit's...torture, was to get to and punish you. Surely he would be finding another way of doing that. That was his goal in life...to get rid of you, for all the suffering your family caused him." Atemu winced, and gripped his cup tighter.

"If I had known, that was how the items had been created...I would have stopped it long ago. I would have destroyed them. I did not mean to make anyone suffer. The thought, of carrying on my fathers legacy...his...diabolical torture of those people. Yes, it was a town filled with thieves, and murders...but there are better means of punishment, of locking people up, to teach them right from wrong...not to descend to their level."

Yuugi placed a hand on Atemu's arm, giving a soft smile.

"It was not your fault. You, are not your father, the Spirit should not have placed his crimes on your head." Ryou gave a soft nod, before sighing.

"However, the Spirit still blames the Pharaoh, and Yami. You both defeated him, and he was sent to the Shadow Realm. I imagine he wants nothing more than revenge on you both."

There was a quiet knock on the door, and Yuugi stood quickly.

"That will be the car for work, I have to go. Ryou, do you go to University with anyone?" Ryou hesitated, before giving a soft nod.

"Yes, Joey isn't in the same classes, but we have roughly the same times. So he tends to walk with me. We have different lunch breaks though"

Yuugi nodded, glancing over to Atemu.

"Can we tell him, the problem? We can trust Joey, he's my closest friend." Ryou hesitated again, the reason he told Yuugi, was to keep this as low down as possible. He didn't wish to give his friends any more trouble than it...than he was worth.

"Yeah, I guess so" He shrugged quietly, head lowered.

"Hey, don't worry, he's your friend too, this is for your protection. We don't want anything bad happening to you Ryou, none of us do. Atemu, can you tell Yami when he wakes up, and Joey. Make sure there is someone with you at all times Ryou. If you've seen the Spirit more, then he's planning something, and he may need you for it. Our first goal is to make sure you are protected. Okay?"

Atemu pushed himself up from the table.

"Yuugi, you are going to be late. Do not worry, I will handle things. I have nothing to do today, I can walk you to University and collect you, as well as Joey. Two heads are better than one, and in a fight, we do not know exactly what the Spirit brings to the table yet. I would rather make sure you are safe, than let him take you, and torture you again."

Ryou smiled, and Yuugi headed to the door.

"Alright, I will be home tonight. We will decide on what else to do. Text me, if you do see the thief. Even if it is just a glance, text me where you are, and the exact time. We should not too careful. I will get in contact with either Atemu, Yami or Joey to meet you. This is important Ryou. Please don't think it's all in your imagination."

With that Yuugi moved to the door, giving him a wink.

"Don't worry about it, the sooner we find out if he is around, the sooner we can deal with him, together. We will never abandon you Ryou. Never think that, alright? Promise me"  
He gave a soft smile, and a nod, and Yuugi was gone, out the door and to work. He clinged tighter to himself, and Atemu placed a hand again on his shoulder.

"I don't feel so well now, the thought of...that monster being back. It scares me Atemu, it really does. He...he put me through so much torture...so much pain. I can't go back to that life, I just can't"

Atemu gave a soft nod, sitting down next to him carefully.

"You will not, you do not ever have to go back to that life again, if I have anything to say about this. We will protect you Ryou. If he is after you, which he might be. I mean when me and Yami first returned from the Afterlife we sought out Yuugi. Then we need to find out everything about him. What he is planning, and what he wishes to happen. Our main priority however, is keeping you safe, and capturing him. Keeping him under our control is the best plan we have at the moment. When Yuugi returns, we will discuss this further with our friends. I understand, you probably do not wish to bother them. But we all only want what is best for you, we want you safe."

Ryou nodded, looking at the table.

"I just feel...why, why does he want me? Can't he just leave me alone? I don't want to have to deal with him, at all."

"I know, I understand. But if he is back, you sadly do not have a choice in the matter. However, if he is after you. We can try to lure him in, use that to keep him under control. But the thought if it...of him being back in our lives, scares me as well. I do not wish to have to deal with him again. Anyway, do you want something to eat? You better get something before going to school. You look...paler than usual, no offence"

Ryou gave a soft grin.

"None taken, thanks Atemu"

-x-

Atemu had walked him and Joey to University, as promised. Joey was a lot more protective of Ryou anyway,lingering with him during his breaks, keeping an eye out on their surroundings. Even Yami joined them both for lunch at a nearby Burger King.

"Thank you both, for doing this for me. I don't mean to cause any trouble" Ryou muttered as he took a small bite of his burger.

"Hey, I'm always up for free food" Joey gave a soft smirk, and a bigger bite of his own burger. Yami rolled his eyes, giving a soft smile.

"We are not here for free food, no matter how nice it is of Ryou to pay for us, thank you by the way, again. It is very kind of you" Ryou turned to Yami, giving a soft shrug.

"It is the least I can do, you guys are keeping an eye on me. It makes me feel much safer."

"Have you seen him? That stupid bastard? If he's bothering you Ryou, I'll deal with him the old-fashioned way. He may have this fancy magic, but he's got nothing on me. I can give him a straight punch in the face for you"

Ryou chuckled at the thought, nodding to Joey.

"I'll take you up on that offer when I next see him"

But he didn't see him. Even at his work, though Atemu was waiting outside for him the whole shift. He told him there was no reason to, he didn't need to take time out of his day to babysit him. But Atemu was happy to. They walked home together, and Ryou made sure to buy everyone pizza, to thank them for their help. It was nice, to feel cared for, and respected. It made him feel...worth something, and treasured. He would show the same concern to any of his friends.

He felt a glow in his stomach, at the thought of friends. He could call these people friends... there was no shying around it. He had lived with Tea, Yuugi, Joey, Duke and Tristan for three years, and they had been nothing but kind to him. It was...pure bliss. Even though he worked, and studied so much, he had friends, who cared for his well-being, and looked after him.

When he arrived home, Tea hugged him tightly.

"Ryou, why didn't you tell us sooner! We're your friends. If you have any problems, we have to know. How can we help you otherwise"  
Ryou shot a glare at Yuugi, who gave a helpless smile.

"Joey told Tristan and Duke, who told Tea. Don't look at me, we all care about you here." Ryou sighed, and smiled to Tea.

"Thank you for your concern, it means a lot. I just...I'm not used to having people to rely on...or to tell my problems to. I only really told Yuugi because of Atemu and Yami. I will try to tell you more often, I promise"

Tea seemed happy with that answer, and stepped back, moving to sit next to Tristan on one of the sofas, Ryou moved to put the pizza down on the table, which Joey, Tristan, Duke and Yami dived for. Atemu, Tea and Yuugi took a slice as well, and Ryou smiled.

"Can you tell us when you started seeing him?"

Ryou frowned, all eyes were on him. Everyone was here, Joey, Tristan, Duke, Yami, Yuugi, Atemu, Tea...

"Uhh, a couple of days after Yami and Atemu came. It was just in the corner of my eye though, so I didn't think anything of it. I thought I was being paranoid..."

Duke nodded.

"Well obviously, after living with that psycho inside your mind for years, that makes perfect sense."

Ryou nodded, rubbing the back of his neck.

"The sightings started to get more frequent...a month or two back? I guess. Definitely round about November, and then throughout December I started seeing a lot more of him. But again, I thought I was just being paranoid...weird right?"

Tea was leaning forward in her seat, frowning.

"Yes, but if he is showing himself more...then something must have happened. I mean Yami and Atemu came back in June...well June ish. That's 6 months of staying in the back of your mind."

"Maybe he's building a psycho army?" Tristan said, and Ryou shook his head.

"No, he's not one to work with people, unless he absolutely needs to. He prefers doing things on his own. He could have been up to something though, for 6 months. I have no clue what though..."

"Right guys, that's enough of the questions. I think we should all keep close to Ryou more often. No offence Ryou, but the more of us, the less chance he has of getting you"

Ryou nodded softly.

"It's okay, no I understand. I didn't see him at all today, first time in a while actually. So it is working, or he's staying away or something."

"What about Marik? Didn't he have a psychotic other half as well? If the Spirit of the Ring is back...wont he be back too?" Joey said.

"That's a good thought Joey, I'm not too sure..." Yuugi frowned.

Atemu froze, a frown on his face.

"I am not sure about now, but when I went to visit Ishizu at the museum, Marik was there, and he seemed fine to me. Perfectly happy. I have met with them a few times since...though last time Marik was not there. I assumed he was busy...Ishizu did not mention anything however, she would have said something...right?"

"I can phone him." Yuugi said, lifting up his phone, and moving through into the kitchen.

They waited in silence while Yuugi was on the phone. They didn't know Marik too well, but Ryou had seen him about University, and spoke to him from time to time. Tea seemed to know him well, as she worked at the desk in the museum, so she saw him quite a lot. Also Tristan and him were quite interested in motorbikes, and spent time together.

Yuugi came back through with a sigh.  
"I can't get in touch with him. He's not picking up his phone."

Ryou sighed, curling up on the chair he had sat in, taking a small bite of the slice of pizza he took.

"This isn't good news. Marik always answers his phone" Tea frowned, lifting up her own phone.

"I've not seen him at work these past few weeks. Ishizu has been more quiet as well. But I didn't think anything was up, I don't really speak to him...too much. I mean now and again yes. But when I do phone him he always answers."

Tristan nodded. "I've tried to arrange to go out with him as well, my bike needs touched up and he's always interested in that. But he's not been answering my texts. I thought he was just busy though."

"What do we do?" Ryou frowned. He didn't want Marik hurt, true he didn't know him too well. But he still didn't want him hurt. Marik's darker half scared even the Spirit of the Ring, which was an achievement. He could feel the fear when he duelled the other. Marik's dark half was psychotic...and just, pure evil.

"If Marik's dark half is back, and the Spirit of the Ring is back. Do you think they would try to work together?" Tea asked, looking over to Ryou, who shook his head rapidly.

"The Spirit hated Marik's dark half with a passion. There was no way he would willingly team up with him. No matter what their goals. Even if he was forced to. He hates him, nearly as much as he hates The Pharaoh."

"So, there is no way we will find them together...unless Marik's dark-half has his own plans" Atemu muttered.

"We should try contacting Ishizu still, see if she has any information she can bring. We may be able to lure the Thief into a trap anyway. That will help ease concerns, if Ryou is willing of course. Do not worry Ryou, we will not force you if you are not willing to"

The whitette sat back, thinking it over, before nodding.

"I would rather like to make sure I am not paranoid, finding out he is actually out of the Shadow Realm and following me, will be a lot worse than me just being crazy though. I'm not sure what I would prefer. I don't want to deal with him again, I really don't"

Yuugi took this chance to stand up, walking over to Ryou.

"Look, if worse comes to worse, Marik has been kidnapped by either his dark-half, or if they are working together, both of them. I know you don't want to Ryou, but if he is in danger, we need to do something, we can't just leave him."

Ryou sighed, putting his arms around himself.

"I know, I know! I'm just...scared, what if...what if it goes wrong? We don't know how powerful he is. Yami and Atemu came back with their magic...what if he's far stronger than before?"

"I doubt that" Yami snorted.

"It's fine Ryou, we will be near you, so if he tries anything bad, we will be able to protect you."

"How do we even know this trap will work?" Ryou was obviously worried now, he was shaking, clinging to himself.

"I'm sorry, I...I don't mean to be scared. Just the thought of him being back...I can't deal with that again. I don't want to be...to be anywhere near him again"

"No no, we completely understand. It is okay if you don't want to. I'm sorry if it seems like I'm forcing you. I'm just trying to show you both sides."

Ryou nodded, pushing himself up from the chair.

"Fine, okay...I guess we can do this. Do you have a plan?"


	3. An Unexpected Shadow

It was a cold January evening. Snow covered the ground softly, everything was quiet, except for a set of careful footsteps crunching through the snow.

Hands moved to tighten the scarf around the wearer, gloved hands shoved further down into deep pockets in search of heat.

The hooded figure looked behind him, glanced both ways before slipping down the dark alleyway, over cautious, careful. Keeping as quiet as possible. As he reached a group of run down apartments he looked behind him once more, before carefully opening the door. The stairway was dark and unlit, the doors to two of the bottom floor flats were boarded up, obviously abandoned, or worse.

However, the figure paid no mind to the derelict state of his surroundings, slipping up the stairs as quick as he could manage, he didn't bother taking his hood down, he was stealthy, and silent.

He walked up the stairs quickly, fumbling with keys in his gloved hands, met with instant warmth as he stepped into the apartment...which was, unexpected. No one knew of his location, he had been careful, quiet...

With a frown the figure smacked the light on, noticing a large man standing by the window.

"You?! How are you back, how did you find me?" The man in front of him gave a soft sneer, as the light flickered softly.

"The great spirit of the Millennium Ring, surprised by little old me? How, delightful~" A purr was heard, causing the hooded man to shiver, fear coursing through his veins. He thought to run.

"Where is Akefia?" He frowned, looking further around the apartment.

"I have no idea, why would I?" The dark-half of Marik stepped from his position, causing Bakura to flinch, and step back.

"Come now, you really did not expect to see me eventually? The 'Great and Powerful' Pharaoh is back, along with the Spirit of the Puzzle, they have settled into their little lives, playing house with those...ugh. You and the Thief King seem to have settled into life quite well here. I figured I would stop by for a visit."

"Well, you have visited, now leave!"

"Such hospitality Spirit. I come to you with a deal, to be perfectly blunt" The sound of a yell was heard just as the darkness finished his sentence.

"Ah he is awake, perfect timing." Bakura looked in shock as the man...no creature. Just because the darkness had his own body...did not mean he was human. This monster was a creature of pure shadows, evil to the core.

The door to Bakura's bedroom was open, Bakura dared to follow the other in...eyes widening.

"Marik?! What in Ra's name are you doing with Marik here?! Do you know he could tell the Pharaoh where I am!" The spirit chuckled, shaking his head, both looked to the blonde haired man, bound and gagged.

"If he escapes, which he will not. I need a place to stay, and we will make a deal. You, in your cosy little...abode, can put us up, and in return, I will give you this"

The dark-half of Marik pulled the Millennium Ring from it's hiding place, and Bakura's eyes widened.

"It still has magic in it?"

"Yes, a small amount. Easy enough to coax the rest of it back in, if you know how. I will give it to you. But do we have a deal?"

Bakura was instantly on edge again, stepping back from the darkness, smirking in front of him.

"I do not think that is a good idea" He muttered, trying to regain his composure. This _thing_ could not get the best of him, not like during that duel. Well then he had Marik distracting him. He glanced over to Marik, before back at the demon.

"Now now, I am hurt. I think it is a wonderful idea personally, aaannnnd, we both have the same goal"

"What is that then?" Bakura frowned, not taking his eyes off the eccentric figure, hood still up, and scarf still covering most of his face. Uneasy, in his own home. This was practically unheard of.

"We both want to see the demise of the Pharaoh. We could team up, rid the world of him and his 'delightful' doppelgängers." The hooded figure folded his arms, raising one eyebrow warily.

"It's the trust thing, that is the problem, to be completely honest with you. You sent me to the shadow-realm...and you are insane. I just do not think it is going to work out"

The shadow turned as he heard the door open, and another man come in with a bag of shopping. He glanced up, before frowning.

"Bakura, you never bring guests over, who is this?"

"Not a guest, and not someone we want to associate with. Get out, and take your Hikari with you." The monster gave a sadistic grin, stepping closer to Bakura.

"Oh, but I rather like it here, besides wouldn't you like to know another piece of information?"

"I said I am not interested demon, now get. out" The words were punctuated with disdain, and loathing.

"Okay okay, fine. I was just going to tell you the location of your precious Hikari, I understand you have been having trouble locating his ...home, with the Spirit of the Puzzle protecting him now."

Bakura turned back to him.

"How on Earth did you know that? How do you know all these things?!" The room became eerily quiet, no one moved, the dark-half of Marik's grin seemed to grow bigger, impossibly so.

"I have my secrets, I have found something, that is highly useful. Also, the Millennium items do not go to waste. True, with your dear shadow friend defeated, the items are not as strong as they once were. But, there is a way we can bring them back to their full potential, and bring the Pharaoh to his knees, together."

"Why do you wish to work with me? As far as I am concerned, we have been enemies for far too long. You and I do not have the best history, after all" Bakura's arms were folded across his chest, glaring at the demon from under his hood.

Akefia had moved to put the items away, not really understanding what was going on, but not wanting to interfere with Bakura and his...strange house-guest. He still was not used to this world, and all the differences. The weather was far too cold, the food was not the same as usual. There was flashing screens, loud cars and much much more that just confused him. However, stealing was still as easy as ever. Their fancy technology only slowed them down in his opinion, while he could sneak through unseen, unheard, with the slight bit of Shadow Magic that remained in him.

"We have the same goals, Bakura. I have told you this, we both wish to see the demise of the Pharaoh. As well as that however, I want to turn their 'happy family' upside down. A good way to do that, would be taking your precious Hikari from them, something they have already been trying to prevent"

The white haired man unfolded his arms, sighing.

"Yes, they have been watching him more carefully. I was too...careless with my lighter half. Usually he would just store the information and not tell a soul. He has gained some courage...or some other fool-hearted emotion to say the least. With the Pharaoh and his...friends on full alert, it makes it harder to lure Ryou away. Though still possible. I know a few things he likes to do, that I can probably catch him doing on his own."

The man opposite him raised an eyebrow.

"Well, if you do need any help~?" He purred softly.

Bakura had to agree, it was a good idea. The two of them, could stand a good chance against the Pharaoh, with Akefia's help. The demon had access to the Millennium Items with the Tomb Keepers insight. As well as that, Marik had access, and the trust of the Pharaoh. They knew Bakura was back, but how likely was it that they knew the demon had returned? It gave them the element of surprise to say the least, and the extra fire-power was nothing to shrug off.

"Fine, you can stay, there is one condition however." He did not trust him, he did not want to trust him. But at this moment in time, this demon was the best hope of getting to Ryou. He had been trying to for the longest time without those..._idiots_ catching onto him.

Shadows seemed to loom across the wall, as the demon leaned closer.

"Tell me then, _sweetheart_~ What is this condition?"

"I want you, to kidnap my Hikari for me. I would myself, but I imagine they are looking for me, considering Ryou has been far more aware than he usually is." This was a better idea. Protecting himself from the Pharaohs magic, and risking this one in return. That way if he did not get Ryou, he would still have to deal with the Pharaoh, while Bakura was safe.

The smirk that crossed the other man's features was...grotesque, unnatural. Not that he looked much different from usual.

"Deal"

-x-

The plan was simple. Well so Yuugi had said for the hundredth time.

He picked a day when Joey and Tristan were both off, as well as himself taking advantage of the time off Kaiba gave him.

It was like putting bait in a trap...not that he would ever call Ryou bait, though that was technically what he was. Bakura was lured to Ryou, just as Yami had been lured to Yuugi. So, leaving Ryou alone would hopefully bring Bakura closer, or close enough for Joey and Tristan, or Atemu and Yami to ambush him from one side. They had separated so there would be nowhere for Bakura to run...or hide.

Yuugi had set off from home first. All of them had left at least 5 minutes apart, so they were not obviously close together, but so they could get to Ryou as quickly as possible. There was no way this was going to fail.

Unless Bakura didn't care, and ignored Ryou. But this was probably one of the only chances he was going to get him alone, if he was watching at all.

Besides, it was the perfect evening for it. Quiet, a festival was going on in another part of the city, so the streets were calm and quiet, no witnesses. Bakura would want to take advantage of this, wouldn't he?

Yuugi walked silently, hood up. It had been a long time since he had been 100% alone, with just his thoughts. Ever since Yami and Atemu came back, ever since he had started working for Kaiba. Life had been all go, which had been amazing. But...it was nice, to think for himself again.

The snow was falling softly, floating gently to the ground. The silence was peaceful, even though this was a trap, he had never felt more relaxed.

He turned a corner, and unexpectedly bumped into Yami, who turned to him, putting a finger on his lips and pointing.

There was a man, on the roof. A faint figure in the flurry of snow, but still there, obviously watching Ryou's route.

"Do you think that's him?" Yuugi muttered quietly, and Yami nodded, saying nothing he started to move. They needed to get to Bakura before he got to Ryou.

Yuugi followed Yami quietly, trying not to notify the figure to their presence, Ryou was still walking, oblivious to his surroundings as he listened to music. Good, the more they could keep Ryou out of this, the better.

As they turned another corner, the figure turned to them, before running in the opposite direction.

"Oh no, he saw us"

"Yes, but if we are quick, we can still catch him! Come on" Yami snarled.

"He is back, we are going to make sure he does not put Ryou through that torture again." The pair turned the corner of a dark alley, but there was no one there. It was dark, apart from the dimly lit street lamp. It was then that both of them heard a yell.

"Ryou?" Yami frowned, Yuugi shrugged and turned on his heel.

They arrived where Ryou used to be, the pair of footprints just stopped suddenly. Atemu was lying on the ground, and gave a soft groan, and Joey looked like he had been flung against a wall.

"Joey! Yami check Atemu!" Yuugi frowned, running to his friend. Tristan appeared from another street as well, dashing over to the group.

"Aw man, what happened here?" He joined Yuugi by Joey, who was seemed to be sleeping.

"He's still breathing, we should get him home. Atemu?" He turned to Yami, who was helping the other up carefully.

"That was no Thief King. Who was that?!" Atemu groaned. "He had the millennium rod...wild, spiky blond hair. I have never seen him before"

Yami turned to Yuugi and Tristan, who both gave a nod.

"The Dark Half of our friend, Marik. We fought against him during our time together. How did he overpower the pair of you?"

"He has his magic, a lot of it apparently. The strength was...unlike anything I have ever witnessed. He just knocked me, and Joey back effortlessly, grabbed Ryou and disappeared." He looked over to Joey, who was stirring slightly, before he bolted up.

"Marik is back?!" He gasped suddenly, and Yuugi put a hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah, we got the news from Atemu. How are you? You suffered a pretty bad knock" Atemu nodded, kneeling down next to him.

"You were really careless rushing to him like that Joey, thank you for trying to protect me. But I can handle things, knowing you got the brunt of the magic makes me feel terrible. How are you feeling? Nothing sinister?"

Joey gave a smirk, and waved his hand.  
"Thanks for your concern Atemu, but I'm fine, honestly. A little knock like that can't damage me. That guy especially has done far worse, so his little magic tricks don't bother me."  
The others nodded, and Atemu sighed, turning to look at the place where Ryou was standing not too long ago.

"Well, do you think this means he is working with Bakura? I mean there would have to be a reason he targeted Ryou directly"

"Poor Ryou" Yuugi rubbed the back of his neck, giving a soft sigh. They promised to protect him, but they couldn't even do that. He was now somewhere unknown, with at least Marik's dark-half, and maybe Bakura as well. There was no way they could possible track him down.

"Wait, Millennium Rod? Marik has the items?" Yami looked to the others.

"If he does, they have no power...I checked them myself. There is no way they could have enough power to be used for dark purposes once more...well not that I know of" The group of them sighed. Before Joey moved forward.

"Well, Ishizu knows about the Items. We should talk to her, see if anything bad has happened. Maybe we can get some clues about Marik, and about the others. Maybe it will help us find out where they are. We need to try and get Ryou back, we promised we'd protect him!"

Yuugi nodded, walking in the direction of their home. "I have her home number, we can get in contact with her. The fact she hasn't spoken to any of us about this is a bit worrying. But we need to find out. The sooner we can get Ryou back from these...ugh. I just can't believe they want to put him through all that again. Why can't Bakura just leave Ryou alone?!"

The walk back home was sullen, and quiet. Atemu was still scolding Joey for protecting him, but both seemed okay after their run in with the demon.

When they walked through the door, Tea looked up with a smile.

"Hi guys, how did it...where's Ryou?" The look on their faces said it all, and she couldn't help but give a soft gasp.

"But you promised he would be safe?! What could possibly have happened that he could be taken from all four of you." Yuugi stepped forward, rubbing his arm gently. He felt bad, really bad for all the problems he had caused. He was the one that made the plan...that failed. He was the one that pushed Ryou to confronting his darker self...and now here they were.

"Marik's dark-half has returned. Me and Yami spotted who we thought was Bakura on the rooftops, so we chased after him. But he disappeared, when we returned, Atemu and Joey were both on the floor. Marik's dark-half has some powerful shadow-magic Tea. If the Spirit of the Ring and him are working together, then we are going to have some problems. He has the rod as well, which could mean he has access to the other Millennium Items. Though Atemu says they have no power, which I am inclined to believe"

Tea sighed, moving to sit back down, wrapping her arms around herself.

"Ishizu has not been at work these past few days. At first I thought it was just coincidence, Marik and her could have both taken a holiday. But she still tends to come in, especially because they are planning a trip to Egypt for next year, so it is rather hectic. But, there has been no sign of her, and still no sign of Marik. Something bad is happening guys. I can feel it"

Atemu put a hand on Tea's shoulder, frowning.

"We will find them, and we will make sure that the Thief and the dark-half of your friend are punished. I promise, but we cannot lose hope Tea. We need to work together, and you have access to the museum, do you not? Maybe there will be important information there. Right now we have to focus, not mourn the loss of people we still have a chance to save."

Tea gave a quiet sniff, and a soft nod. Atemu smiled, and turned to the others.

"Right, first thing tomorrow, Tea me and you will go to the museum, see if there is anything there. Yuugi, do you want to take Joey, Duke and Tristan to Marik's house? You know where he lives right?"

Yuugi nodded, and turn to the other three, who all smirked.

"Atemu is right, we can find these creeps, and get Marik and Ryou back. We've bet them before" Joey chuckled.

Atemu turned to Yami.

"You still have access to shadow-magic, correct? Maybe there is a way to track their own shadow-magic usage. Do you think you could do that?"

Yami nodded. "Of course, I remember seeing a book the last time I went there with you. I will come with you, and see if I can find more information about shadow-magic. If it is the only way to track them, then we should try to take advantage of it. If they are using shadow-magic, then I might be able to find away to get rid of it, or at least try and send them both back to the shadow-realm."

"First things first though. We need to find Ryou. We're going to need to start tomorrow though, considering nothing will be open, and I do not wish to bother Ishizu if she is having problems."

Everyone nodded, and Tea sighed.

"I hope he's okay, the thought of leaving Ryou with those...monsters, and we don't even know if they have Marik, he might be all alone having to put up with them. I wish we could have done more to protect him"

"Don't worry Tea, we will find them. There is no way they'll be getting away with this, I promise you."

Tea sighed, and hugged herself tighter.

"I hope so Yuugi, the thought of him having to deal with this on his own, and he has just started to come out of his shell more. He'll never be able to trust us again after this. We lied to him, and promised him protection."  
"No one expected Marik's dark-half to be so strong, or to be around at all. I'm sure he will understand. He's a lot stronger than he was. I'm positive he wont give Spirits an easy time. He's got some fight in him" Tristan smirked.

"I hope you're right Tristan, I hope you're right"


	4. Untrustworthy Questions

Floating aimlessly down a stream of pitch darkness.

It felt relaxing, calming. His eyes were closed, his arms by his sides. The peace was wonderful. There was no curiosity about how he got here, no wonder as he travelled further down. His mind was clear of thoughts, of worries, of fear. Ryou enjoyed this feeling, of calm and silence.

Suddenly, muttering cut through the black. Fear, panic, pain. The once relaxing surroundings filled with the crackling of whispers, of judgement and of pain. Where was he? Why was he here? What was going on?

The world around him started to crumble, beams of white light peaked through the constantly breaking walls, screams, moans, terror was heard, and panic surged through Ryou's mind.

He awoke with a gasp, shooting himself up as quick as he could, breathless. The loud pants grew softer, and he slowly calmed. _Just a dream...just a horrible dream_

Taking a look at his surroundings brought another strike of fear, as his memories from the night before returned.

Yuugi and the others, had tried to lure Bakura. He had been the bait, though Yuugi had been far too polite to say it, but it wasn't Bakura no...not the Spirit of the Millennium Ring that haunted his every waking moment. It was a man, with chaotic blonde hair and bright, manic eyes that caused the shadows to surround him. That knocked his friends back and took him away. It was all he was able to remember before the world turned black.

Oh no, the others! He hoped they were okay. This was all his fault, Bakura was his dark half, he should be the only one suffering, not his friends, the ones who took him in, and protected him, helped him heal. Poor Yuugi would be feeling guilty, he knew the young man well enough to know he would be filled with guilt. Oh if only he could tell him it wasn't his fault. No one expected there would be another person involved, and not one so ridiculously strong.

The sound of the door opening caught his attention, and he turned to see a young man, about his age slip in quietly. He knew that face, Marik! So that...the one who kidnapped him had to be Marik's dark-half. He remembered now, that's why he seemed so familiar.

"Ah, you're finally awake. Don't worry, I'm here to help. We are both in the same situation right now, Ryou...isn't it?" Ryou gave a weak nod, and Marik sighed.

"Malik...My Darker half, who has not only stolen my life but has now decided to take on a version of my name, is the one who kidnapped you. They're working together. Your dark-half and mine, as well as the Thief from the time of the Pharaoh.

"Bakura's former self?" Ryou frowned, that was...that actually made sense. Atemu was here, why wouldn't...Akefia? Was it, something Egyptian anyway.

Marik gave a soft nod, staying by the door. "They have a plan, to take control of the world, which is actually predictable. But they want to use the Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle to do it. I don't know their full plan, but I have heard them talking. I want to warn you, be careful around them. They're far more sadistic than they used to be. Just...ok?"

The whitette nodded, and Marik sighed. "Right okay, one of them will be coming to check on you soon"

"Most likely Bakura" They both said at once, and Ryou sighed, wrapping his arms around himself.

"Okay, I'll...thank you for telling me Marik, be safe yourself. I can't imagine living here is pleasant."

"Keep your head down and out of trouble, and they tend to ignore you. That's my advice."

With that the blonde slipped out of the room again, and Ryou hugged himself tighter. Back to hell. No rest for the wicked after all. What on earth had he done to deserve this torture? He had been kind, honest, friendly. He had given up his time to help people, worked...oh no, his work! They would fire him for sure. He didn't want to put them out of staff...

Did he hear himself? Worrying about Yuugi, worrying about his work. When he should be worrying about himself. Stuck in this room until the monster that haunted his sleep, and his every waking moment was lurking outside this room, doing, planning god knows what. He was back to square one, back with the being that had been apart of his life for so long, the darkness that killed his family, that removed him from the world, and forced him into isolation. Bakura seemed to like making him seem weak, and without friends or family to comfort him...

The sound of the door caused him to jump, before in walked the spirit...demon...man he had been dreading to see. It had been three blissful years of peace and quiet, no whispers, no threats, no shutting him away. Yet here he was, the cruel, heartless, monster that ruined his life.

"Ryou~" His voice was sickening, he felt like he was going to faint. Why? Why did he deserve this?! He clutched the sheets tighter.

"I have missed you, did you miss me? I don't doubt you did. What with you being so helpless and lost without me. I was wondering, all that time in the shadow-realm, how did you manage to stay alive, without me constantly having to guide you? No matter, I am back now, we do not need to worry about you being all alone any more. Or pathetic, as you tend to be."

Ryou winced at the insult. Backhanded compliments, polite words filled with threats. There was no doubt, this was Bakura.

"You have your own body now, how does that feel?" Ryou tried to sound uncaring, as he glanced the man up and down.

"No need to share with a host, no need for a host at all. Which brings forward the question, what do you want with me Bakura?"

Bakura's grin grew wider, as he stepped further into the room. Circling Ryou, arms behind his back, eyes never leaving the younger. He was like a hawk, circling it's prey, assessing the situation. With a soft click of his tongue and a gleam in his eye, he closed the gap between them, and Ryou couldn't help but flinch.

"Well, where else would I get my fun. You know this place better than me, you know the workings, the lives of people, you have your ordinary, boring, simple hopes and dreams. I figured I could take them from you, and bring you back to reality. Did you forget the promise you made to me long ago, when you were just a child, with no friends, no company, just the voice in your head?"

Ryou looked to the bed, gripping his arm tightly. "We'll always be there for each other. You promised never to leave me alone, to always be beside me. At the time I thought we were making a promise of friendship. You're no friend Bakura, you're a monster, a demon. WHY ARE YOU BACK?!"

The yell caught Bakura by surprise, and he stepped back instinctively. Ryou did not wait, pushing himself up with all the strength he could manage, and slammed at Bakura's chest, causing the other to get knocked back slightly.

A switch clicked, Bakura swept Ryou from the floor, slamming him brutally against the wall.

"Don't forget little _host_, I'm in my own body now, I am far stronger than you, I have the advantage. You do not wish to make me your enemy Ryou. You _know_ what happens to my enemies."

The younger scrambled at Bakura's hand, trying to claw him off his throat, gasping for air when he could.

"P...please Bakura, o...okay...I...I'm sorry" He whimpered, and gasped as he was dropped roughly to the ground.

And just like that, he was back to smirking. Like another switch had went off. Bakura's emotions had always been sudden and unexpected, but of course he was in a body now, they'd switch like rapid fire.

"Promise me you will never leave me, and I'll think about sparing your friends a visit" Bakura smirked, kneeling down beside Ryou.

"We'll be together forever Ryou, just promise me you'll never try to escape. You could spare me from torturing Yuugi, hurting that wretched Pharaoh, so many delicious ideas come to mind. But you can stop them all so easily"

"Fine" Ryou let out a breathe of air, rubbing his neck softly.

"Fine, I'll stay with you, I...I wont leave you again. BUT you have to promise you wont harm them" He wouldn't give in entirely, but he couldn't let his friends get hurt. And this was if he tried to escape, still nothing stopping him from being rescued...if they cared that much. A hopeful dream, but they wouldn't go through all that trouble to become his friend, just to abandon him in his time of need. He trusted them, he needed to start believing in them more. They're his friends.

"Deal~" Bakura sneered, before turning on his heel.

"Oh I should tell you, we have three people staying with us. You have already met the man that kidnapped you, Malik. We have his light-half Marik here as well, just ignore him, he does not talk much, well he never talks to me, not that I am complaining. As well as those two we have Akefia, some how the... whatever it is, brought him back here as well. Not sure how, or why. But I am not complaining, he is rather quiet, but does what I tell him to do. Scared of the Spirit of the Millennium Ring and what not."

Ryou pushed himself up clumsily the minute Bakura stopped hovering over him. Was he to follow, was he to stay here? He decided to follow, sticking to Bakura as the door to the main room was pushed open. He could see Marik lingering beside Malik, who had his eyes closed resting on a chair.. The light was brighter in the main room, and he noticed a rather large bruise covering Marik's eye. That looked...painful.

He assumed it was Akefia at the table over at the other side of the room, sharpening one of many knives that lay in front of him.

"Sleeping beauty is awake" Bakura smirked, and Malik opened one eye lazily.

"Hmm, yes finally. I thought my magic may have been too powerful for him. I did not mean for him to be asleep for that long. He is a pretty thing, is he not? I can see why you are fond of him Bakura."

Bakura nodded, turning to look at Ryou. "Hmm, I guess so. He looks like me, so I can't really tell. I mean softer features of course. But oh well, he has promised not to fight back. So that is the main thing"

"I can see you have already scared him with some good old fashioned violence" Malik pointed to the bruising beginning to form on Ryou's neck. Ryou was able to glance in a mirror, but kept quiet about it. So these were the monsters behind everything. Just the thought of Marik having to put up with them for, as long as he had was terrifying.

He glanced over to Marik, who was looking in the other direction at something. Well, they were trapped together anyway. Whether that was a good thing or not he had no clue.

"Akefia, come meet our new guest. This is Ryou, the Millennium Ring holder of this era. Looks like you, does he not?" Akefia lifted himself from his chair, walking over to the pair of them.

"He would fetch a high price with slave traders, which is a good thing. He could bring in a lot of money."

Bakura shook his head, giving a soft sigh.

"I have explained this to you already. We are not in your era any more. We do not sell people for money, well some people do, but I am not sure how profitable it is. Everything works differently in this time. Besides, I would rather no one get his hands on Ryou, he belongs to me"

Akefia frowned. But shrugged. "I still think the money would be worth more. I mean unless he can clean and cook. I mean what is the point in looking pretty if you do not have any other talents?"

Malik gave a soft chuckle, pushing himself up. "I think looking pretty is very good. Having someone to stare at all day would make my life so much more interesting."

"You have your Hikari, leave Ryou alone Malik." Bakura still didn't trust him, or like him particularly, but he did stick to his promise. So maybe he could be trusted. There was no way he was letting his guard down though.

Ryou had kept quiet, examining Akefia closely. This was the Thief King? He was definitely intimidating. Cold, and quiet. That scar across his eye, the shocking contrast between his skin and the white hair. Though he was very familiar to him, for some reason. He had seen him somewhere before, he was sure of it.

Akefia glanced over to him and he looked away quickly, causing the other man to smirk. He saw him, oops. He had to be more careful around here. With Bakura threatening him...he rubbed his neck at the thought of that, and Akefia...well he didn't know how Akefia acted, and what he was supposed to do around him. Was he similar to Bakura? He had no idea.

"Anyway back to the matter at hand. We have your precious Hikari out of there, now we deal with the Pharaoh" Malik snarled, standing up.

"But you promised not to hurt my friends!" Ryou gasped, and Bakura turned to him.

"The Pharaoh doesn't have 'friends'. He is a stuck up, selfish, royal bastard who is only happy when he sees things going his own way. I bet if he had to choose between his 'friends' or that precious Hikari of his. He would give you all up in an instant"

Ryou shook his head, Atemu wouldn't do that. Atemu had helped him, and the others. They would work together, he trusted he would...or would he.

Those two always stayed close to Yuugi, true they were friendly, but their main priority was Yuugi, you could tell by the way they stuck by his side, helping him with things and...well they didn't really go out on their own. Either with each other, talking about one thing or another, or with Yuugi.

"You think I am right, do you not~" Bakura purred, everyone was looking at Ryou, even Akefia raised an eyebrow as he watched the internal struggle.

No...Ryou was in shock. Bakura...was Bakura right? Well obviously, he noticed it. They all had, everyone in the house. Atemu and Yami, though very nice, were only friends because of Yuugi. A conversation he had with Joey once, walking to University, had brought that to light. Not that they minded. Yami and Atemu were part of Yuugi, of course they would be closer to him.

But that meant, Akefia and Bakura...were part of Ryou...did that mean he have to be closer to them? The way they all acted when they were together. They just worked so well off each other. When Yami or Atemu was in the room, Yuugi relaxed immensely, he wasn't as stressed looking. They had an aura about them...that just showed how close they were to one another. Ryou sometimes wished for that connection to someone.

Bakura's smirk had grown wider as Ryou nodded softly.

"Why are you telling me this? Atemu doesn't have to consider me his friend, I consider him mine!" But the doubt was still there, should he? Should he give a damn about them if they didn't give a damn about him. No, no that was Bakura talking, Bakura was trying to manipulate him, turn him against his friends, leave him with no one to rely on...it happened last time, he would do it again with ease.

"But when have I ever lied to you Ryou? Everything I ever told you was the truth. You know that, you witnessed it yourself. I saw your life through your eyes remember, no one else's"

He was panicking, he had to calm down. He had to focus, to remember what Yuugi and his friends taught him. He was strong, he was brave. It was easy enough to fight against Bakura's manipulation, he just had to want to.

But did he want to? He had relied on Bakura for so long, it would be...easier, to let him take control, let him make the rules. Bakura was wise, true dangerous and terrifying, but he wasn't stupid. He kept them both safe for so long, he knew what to do.

"I am not going to let you hurt them Bakura, you promised. As long as I listen to you, and do what you say, and not try to escape. You are not allowed to hurt them. You said you never lie, we made a deal, you have to stick to it" Ryou had no idea where that surge of confidence came from, but he wasn't going to back down now. At least to protect Yuugi and the others, he had to protect them from this monster.

"Fine, Ryou. Have it your way, but you do whatever I say. The minute you break, or fail, then I get to do whatever I want to your precious friends. First of all, you need to tell me what you know about the Millennium Items." Bakura glanced over to Malik, who rolled his eyes but gave a quick nod. They would have to plan something else. Not that it mattered, they needed the Pharaohs magic, they could find a way not to hurt him.

"Why do you want to know? The Pharaoh said there was no magic left in the items. They are in Ishizu's care anyway, and well guarded, I doubt you could take them" The younger man crossed his arms, leaning against the wall. Bakura could still hurt him, but he wasn't giving him the pleasure of being an obedient little Hikari like he had been in the past.

"That's all I know though. I've never seen the ring since the last time you were around. Not that I would want anything to do with that wretched thing any more."

Bakura rolled his eyes, and shrugged. "Just curious. No reason for alarm, also how many people live in that house with you?" this caused Ryou to raise an eyebrow. Well, he knew they all lived together anyway. Shouldn't he know who was all there?

"Eight of us." He didn't like having to give this information. He had to remember not to give details, just answer questions with basic answers. The less information he could get out of him, the better.

"Well this interrogation seems to be going nowhere. Your Hikari is rather stubborn. Why don't you just beat him up and force him to do as you say" Malik stood up with elegance, and Ryou flinched.

"Unlike you, I think there are other ways to get my point across, Malik. I don't want to cause a fight. Me and Ryou settle our differences quite well, and violence only happens when he is...hopelessly uncooperative. Just because I came from the Darkness of the Ring, does not mean I am pure evil. I have some decorum. Fighting with words and wit is far better than fighting with fists. Besides, what good would that do? We both know who would win in the fight. Ryou is not that strong after all"

Ryou had to admit that was true. Bakura had only ever been violent to him a few times. He usually caused psychological trauma. Locking him away, forcing him to watch images of the deaths of his family and friends, sticking him in a dark room for hours, days, or weeks...oh god, the torture. The memories were just as bad.

"Hmmm, violence gets the point across quicker" Malik suggested with a smirk, turning to Marik.

"I mean look how easy it was to get my lighter half to obey, all it took was a quick beating." Bakura rolled his eyes, and Akefia stood back up.

"Different people act in different ways. Bakura is better at psychological torment, as we all know far too well. One thing that may work for you, may not work as well for him. We want Ryou to talk, not clam up completely. He is the only one in our group that has been close to the Pharaoh for any length of time. So that information is important"

"Thank you Akefia, but please, sit back down. We don't want to give away all our secrets" Akefia was still glaring at Malik, wanting to defend the Spirit of the Ring. Ryou still had to learn about their relationship. Was it similar to his and Bakura's. Bakura seemed to be taking control, and was obviously in charge. But Akefia was known as the Thief King, he had to have more to him than how he was acting.

"Fine, I will let you all be best friends, I have a job for Marik anyway. So while you all play house, I will be finding more information. But Bakura, we need to talk about our plan soon. The Pharaoh is now onto me, and probably onto you as well. So hurry up"

"Of course Malik, we are not going to be playing house" He snarled, and Malik smirked, dragging Marik along with him.

"Of course, keep telling yourself that. Enjoy your new housewife. We should not be too long if Marik cooperates."

When Malik was out of the room Akefia relaxed visibly.

"I do not like him Bakura, I do not trust him. We should get rid of him now he has brought your lighter half to us."

"And get on his bad side? You have not seen that lunatic at his worst Akefia. Besides, he could still be helpful. But right now, let us have some fun with our new guest~"


	5. A Simple Thief

Life had so quickly gone from peace, and happiness, to fear and silence. Snow turned to rain, and the holiday season was washed away, the New Year had started off so well, surrounded by friends and dreams, but here he was now.  
Ryou had learned quickly how to appease the demons he lived with. Malik was the one to watch out for the most. He liked flirting with him, _touching_ and giving him all the wrong attention. He pinched him in places he didn't want to be pinched, causing him to squeak or glare at him. Only when Bakura wasn't looking. It seemed like both Bakura and Malik had a mutual respect, and fear for each other. Especially since that fight a couple of days ago. They couldn't decide on how to do a certain part of their plan, and got into an argument. Punches were thrown and by the end of it both were bruised...and _other things_ that caused Ryou to blush and turn away. But at least they were both calm again, well until the next thing that set them off.

Akefia had kept quiet most of the time he had been around. Giving him an extra apple here and there or helping him reach objects without saying a word. He definitely seemed nicer than Bakura, far more...careful though, making sure not to cause any problems with anyone. Especially not Malik, who he avoided like the plague.  
Bakura was...Bakura. He hadn't changed in the slightest. Scaring him in the hallway, forcing him to do whatever he wanted. Now that he had a body of his own that usually meant massages or making him food. He had taken up cleaning and doing other chores. It seemed to keep Bakura from harassing him too much anyway, something that was a huge relief.  
He dared not to say anything unless he was spoken to, and even then it was rarely questions, just being asked to do things. Marik and him had a good friendship going on, and tried to speak to each other as much as possible to keep each other sane. Which was usually when they were on their own, which ended up being quite often. They had a lot of talking to catch up on, Marik told him about Malik, and he told him as much about Bakura as he could.

He woke up most mornings to a yell from Bakura. He had found sanctuary in a small laundry room in the back of the apartment that was being unused. He managed to smuggle some blankets in the last time he was left alone, and made quite a comfy bed for himself.  
Though he had promised Bakura, he had tried to escape many times when left alone. There seemed to be a barrier of shadow-magic surrounding the apartment, so there was no chance of escaping even if he wanted to.

It was one of these mornings, quiet and rainy, that he opened his eyes lazily. There was no yell of his name, no sound was heard in the rest of the apartment, which caused his curiosity to rise.  
Softly, he pushed himself up from the mound of blankets, sliding his clothes on carefully, before looking out of the room. Usually Malik was resting in his chair, or Bakura was perched on one of the wardrobes, but today the room was bare. No one made a sound.  
A glance at the clock told him he had slept in rather late, something he had not done for time actually. Even since he had been living with the others, he always stuck to a strict time schedule for himself.

He turned to go into the kitchen, and gave a soft squeak as he saw Akefia standing there, causing the other to look up. They studied each other quietly for a few minutes, they had never been fully alone together before. This was Ryou's past self. Someone he would have never met if it wasn't for Bakura.  
Akefia stepped forward, and he flinched, moving back two steps rather quickly.  
"It is alright, I do not plan to hurt you" Akefia said suddenly, raising both hands. His voice was deeper than Bakura's, and heavily accented. A very similar accent to Atemu actually, now that he thought about it.

"Ok" Was all Ryou said, still scared of the other. But he did seem...nicer, than Bakura. He had already made that observation, but there was something about Akefia he...trusted. Which sounded odd, considering this was the King of Thieves he was staring at.  
Akefia again moved closer, before bending down to Ryou's level. There was a large height difference between himself and Akefia, the Egyptian was much taller, and muscular for that matter.

"Bakura has a fondness for you. You are his treasure, he likes to say. I imagine we have similar relationships to him. You and I. After all, we are both mortals being controlled by a Spirit, is that not right?"  
Ryou gave a soft nod, letting Akefia lift some of his hair.  
"You have a very similar appearance to him. He probably prefers your softer features to mine. Though whenever I saw him, haunting my dreams, stalking my nightmares, he had much darker skin. Though of course I only remember seeing glances of him, from the corner of my eye. But I knew that demon was there."  
Ryou sighed, nodding once more.  
"There was a time before Bakura, where I would see him in my dreams. I thought he was a friend at first, come to keep me company, and make me brave when I was a child. But that quickly disappeared. He is a nightmare, that stalks your life, causing pain and destruction. The ring is an unlucky charm that the wearer is bound by." He looked up to Akefia, who nodded carefully. It was hard to find someone who understood, but Akefia wore the ring before him.  
Yuugi didn't understand, Yami had always been kind. Marik didn't either. Malik had been born of his own hatred, the darkness in Bakura was different...in some way.

Akefia gave a soft sigh, turning to Ryou.  
"The ring is definitely what caused his torment, and his power to grow. He is a parasite, feeding off the living. Well now he is a demon haunting our waking lives" He rubbed his arm carefully, and Ryou saw the tip of a bruise when the sleeve moved.  
"You are hurt?" He frowned, and Akefia shrugged.  
"Nothing I cannot handle. Beaten and bruised are the least of my worries. However, trying to work your devices is another problem. I do not trust these objects. Bakura says it is easy, but I do not understand them."  
Ryou looks at the package in Akefia's hands, popcorn? Of course, Akefia wouldn't understand technology, but Atemu seemed to pick it up rather quickly. Then again, he had everyone else teaching him. He couldn't imagine Bakura having much patience to teach Akefia.  
"How about I make us something to eat? Besides, I don't think popcorn is rather filling" He smiled softly at Akefia, sliding past to find something to make. Akefia watched him for a few minutes, before smiling back.

This young man, with the face of the demon, was nothing like the others. The blonde haired one was quiet, the manic was just...scary, and Bakura was dangerous. This...light-half of Bakura was the complete opposite, he liked it, being around him was relaxing. Bakura always made him feel on edge, and he dared not speak to the other two.  
When the food was ready Ryou laid a bowl for himself down, before offering another to Akefia.  
They both ate in silence, Ryou enjoyed this. He enjoyed the company of someone who wasn't always trying to scare him, and Akefia enjoyed the company of a beautiful young man. He could say the same about Bakura, he was stunning after all. But far more dangerous, and unexpected. Always lingering in shadows...and always willing to beat him some more if he did anything wrong.

When the pair were done, Ryou took the bowls.  
"Do you mind if I take a look at that bruise? Or any other injuries you might have? I know Bakura makes you do a lot of dangerous work. Maybe I have something that can help you?"  
Akefia blinked a few times, before nodding obediently. Not much he could say against that. If this light-half could heal him faster, then he could get out working for Bakura again, and not have to face another beating for being 'weak and useless'  
He slipped his shirt off, and when Ryou turned back around he blushed softly, before giving a quiet gasp. The man was covered in bruises and scars.  
"What does Bakura make you do?" He frowned softly. Bakura had gotten him...well stolen him some first aid medicine. He was basically a glorified housekeeper and medic, having had to fix Marik up a few times from the beatings Malik gave him.  
"Oh, most of these are just from Bakura, he is rather quick to anger. He does not like me slacking around, apparently he would rather have me steal certain things for him. At least it gets me away from him."

Ryou lifted some pain relief cream, and some ointment to clean the wounds.  
"Have you ever thought of running away? I mean you are allowed to step outside, you could be free without much hassle."  
Akefia gave a soft chuckle, rubbing the back of his neck.  
"How I wish I could, but he has this...ability or something. I tried once, he found me within the hour. He has this sense, he is amazing at finding...well me anyway. He could not find you. It is like we are attached though. I can hear his thoughts sometime, know what he is feeling. Like the ring still binds us together. He tells me what to do, gives me orders, and if I do not do them to his specifications, then he beats me. I have tried to fight back, but he has so much power, and magical ability. It is just...impossible for me to win, and now you are here too. I wish I could help you, Bakura is not someone you wish to mess with."  
Ryou nodded softly.  
"Yes, I know that too well. I accidentally dropped one of his plates and broke it, he gave me this." He pointed to the faint scar on his arm.  
"It was not too sore, but I've been trying to be careful ever since. After all, he is easier to deal with when he is happy"

Akefia grabbed his arm carefully, examining the mark.  
"If he hurts you again, come straight to me. Or if you do anything to get into trouble, tell me. I am sure I will be able to stop him hurting you. I...I do not wish to see you hurt"  
Ryou smiled softly, putting some cream on the bruises.  
"It's fine really, he didn't hurt me too bad, I've had a lot worse when having to deal with him."  
"Y...yes I understand that, but please. I do not wish for him to harm you any more, just...please" Akefia blushed softly, and Ryou gave another soft smile, finishing with the cream.  
"Ok then, if that is what you want. Just be careful yourself, and come to me if you have any more scrapes, I'm no doctor, but scrapes and cuts are rather easy to clean up, and stop infection. I'll promise if you do"  
The thief looked up to the younger, and gave a soft smile and a nod.  
"If you insist, then I am sure I can manage to tell you. Is that all right?" The other chuckled, and nodded happily. Well he was right, at least Akefia was nice.

He stood up to put the medicines away, when the door was forced open, Malik came in rather abruptly, dragging Marik behind him carelessly.  
"I don't care what you tried, you messed up the job rather awfully. I've told you Marik, if you simply obey we wouldn't go through all this shit!" He shoved Marik into the bedroom he claimed for himself, and slammed the door shut. Ryou heard a clattering of some furniture, and knew Marik had landed badly.  
"Oh, hey sweetheart, look at you playing nurse. Care to look after my wounds?" He grinned dangerously, and Akefia pushed himself up.  
"Hey hey thief, wait a minute. Bakura wanted me to give you a message. We have a big job going on by the docks right now, and he wants you to keep an eye out, make sure things go smoothly. He'll meet you there in a couple of hours."  
Akefia nodded quietly, moving to lean over Ryou.  
"Thank you for your assistance" He muttered, and Ryou couldn't help but give a soft blush.  
"U...hhh no problem?" He muttered, and Akefia smirked, sliding his shirt back on. Giving him a wink he moved to the door, grabbing his coat, before disappearing out of the door.

Ryou hummed softly, a blush still across his cheeks, Akefia was...delightful~. Wait did he just think that?  
"Well sweetheart? How about you come fix me up? Since you're playing nurse" The purr in Malik's voice caused him to shiver with disgust, as he fell into his usual seat.  
"Yes of course, what seems to be the problem?" He turned to him, smiling softly, being as polite as possible. This man, who just shoved poor Marik into a room. He was going to have to check on him later. He always felt so sorry for him. Malik treated him awfully, even worse than Bakura treated him.  
"How about a massage as well beautiful? C'mere, give me a kiss wont you?" Ryou kept a smile on his face, but deep down he was gagging, no, he didn't want to do that at all. But he had no idea what this man was capable of, and he'd rather not be hurt by him.  
With a soft sigh, he moved to him, and gave him a soft peck on the lips.  
"Which injuries would you like seen to?" He lifted the creams up to the table beside Malik's chair. Malik slid his own shirt off, and Ryou saw scar after scar, as well as the same tattoo Marik had.

"This body is not as sturdy as when my spirit inhabited Marik. I scar and bruise far more easily as a mortal. However, I'm still excellent at fighting. Fix these up"  
He did as he was told, rubbing the cream over the wounds, making sure to carefully wrap any open wounds up.  
"You really should see a doctor, some of these are really bad" He muttered more to himself, but Malik chuckled.  
"Who needs a doctor? I have you, beautiful. Plus, with the work you do, my Shadow-magic should be able to heal the rest quite easily." Ryou just rolled his eyes, and kept rubbing the cream in his back.  
When all the wounds were completely covered over, he packed the things away once more.  
"You're finished, they should heal in their own time, but if you want to use shadow-magic to speed things up, then they shouldn't take long at all. You really should be more careful, a mortal body isn't something to fool around with, you only have one"  
Malik purred, grabbing Ryou by the chin, looking at him.  
"Now now, such wisdom from such a young man. Care to share more?" He licked Ryou's lips, and he flinched, but said nothing, quietly hoping he would let go. Why did he have to focus on him so much?

"Well, I could really do with that massage now, so how about it? Come on~" Ryou turned to the door he heard Marik fall behind.  
"Let...me check on him first, please. And then I will give you your massage. Alright? Please" Malik frowned, before rolling his eyes.  
"I don't see why you care, but sure, go ahead. See if your precious friend is fine. But just check, he is being punished for being a failure"  
Ryou turned to him angrily. "I don't care if he is being punished, he will have no use to you if you have broken a bone. I've told you, a mortal body is not to be messed with. Now, I will go treat him, and make sure he is alright. Then you will get your massage. You have to be more careful Malik. None of us are of use to you if we are injured, or worse." With that he turned on his heel, and walked into the bedroom. Marik was curled up against the wall, causing Ryou to give another soft sigh.  
"Marik, it's me. I'm here to help you. Malik let me" Marik glanced up, relaxing visibly.  
"Ryou, of course. I'm okay, sturdier than I look. My ankle is just sprained to be honest." Ryou nodded, pulling out the creams once more. After checking his friend over carefully, he nodded.  
"What did you do to anger him?" He frowned, and Marik shrugged.  
"He told me to do one thing, then do another. He keeps mixing up what he wants me to do, then I get in his way and he punishes me for it. Of course he never blames himself, it is always my fault. Not that I have the upper body strength to argue with him."  
Ryou nodded softly, putting the creams away.  
"Well you should be more careful, he is rather violent isn't he? I don't like seeing you hurt Marik, especially when there is nothing I can do to help. You're my friend" Marik smiled up at him, nodding.  
"I'll try, but I can't promise anything, he is unpredictable, and awful. But I'll try, for you"

Walking back through into the main room, he saw Malik still relaxing in his chair.  
"I made some food earlier, would you like some?" He acted like he didn't yell at him earlier, which he just realized he did...yelled...at Malik, he was dead. Oh no, oh no, oh no...he shouldn't have done that. Why did he do that?  
"No, I am alright." He said nothing else and Ryou nodded, putting the creams away, before getting the cream he used to massage Bakura.  
"You should lie on the sofa, I will massage your back for you. Would you like your feet done as well?" Malik nodded, doing as he was told. He was just as muscular, well they all did so much work, that it wasn't a surprise that they would all be athletic. But he couldn't shake the image of Akefia's chest...of Akefia...he shook himself out of that image, and moved to Malik.

"Now just relax, it makes it easier for me to give you a massage, alright?" 


	6. A Shadow Lingers

The shadows covered the rooftops, early was the best time to keep an eye on things. No one would notice, no one would care, as a hooded figure stalked high above, keeping an eye out of the surroundings, dodging rain soaked tiles, and leaping over gaps between the houses.  
He was swift, and quick footed. Light footsteps made no noise as they skipped across. Landing elegantly each time. An obvious professional, no one would dare be able to track this person. Especially considering he knew what he was doing.

Bakura gave a soft smirk as a large gap approached, not even pausing as he jumped across, landing with ease on the other side. He had jumped larger gaps than that in his time, and with his shadow-magic at full strength, he was unstoppable.  
He gave a pause when he reached the edge of this rooftop, surveying the street below. People were walking, the early morning bustle heading to work and school, oblivious to the shadow above, watching their every move. It was obvious, who was vulnerable, who he could take from. The inner voice, telling him to go for the man with the wallet, the woman with the necklace, it would be so easy, and he could go unnoticed. But no, that was not why he was here today. He had his sights set on a grander prize, something irresistible. The rest of the Millennium Items.

He leapt onto the rooftop of the museum, making sure his footing was steady before continuing, two figures caught his attention down below. So...they sensed it as well? A disturbance in the Items, of course they did. No one had as much connection as the Pharaoh to the Puzzle, they went hand in hand. With a smirk he moved further up the roof, finding a small door that he could slip through. With the Pharaoh here he would have to be far more careful, but it wouldn't hurt to see what they were up to.  
As he slid down the ladder, he heard the voices echo through the long halls. It caused him to snarl, it had been a long time since he had heard the voice of his enemy, that gloating as he was defeated. There was a reason he despised him so much. Why were they here so early though? The Pharaoh probably couldn't wait to see the items again, such evil things, to hold so much joy to the 'God amongst men'

A quiet huff left his lips, but he kept his hood on, following them from the balcony, hiding in the shadows. Luckily only the bottom lights were on this time, so he could easily slip about unnoticed. Him and Malik scouted this whole building a few days ago, he knew the blind spots well by now. So easy, mortals were far too stupid.

"My Pharaoh, Spirit, please forgive me for calling for you so early. But the items, they are...acting strange. I just had to, they...are glowing. I am not sure what the matter is. I know the pair of you would have far more understanding than me" Ishizu lead them through the long corridors, Yami and Atemu stuck close to her. If the items were acting up, they could be volatile.  
"No, thank you for alerting us to this Ishizu, whatever the problem is, we should be able to get it under control as quickly as possible." Ishizu nodded, pushing open a door, leading them to another room. The glass cabinets displayed the life of Atemu, hieroglyphics, the items, old weapons and head wear that still looked beautiful to this day.  
The items stood in the middle, minus the Ring and the Rod.  
"Where are they?" Yami frowned, Ishizu knew the full question, and she sighed.

"Marik has been missing for a few weeks now, me and Odion...fear the worst. We have tried to keep it secret, I don't want to hassle you any more my Pharaoh, and Spirit. Please, forgive me. We, we do not wish to trouble you with our petty problems"  
Atemu's frown deepened.

"No Isis...Ishizu, sorry. Your problems are never too petty, we are your friends. We are here to help you, and always will be. I want to make sure you, Marik and Odion are all safe. We all do. Let us check on these items first, and you can tell us more about what happened to Marik"  
Ishizu nodded, and moved to unlock the puzzle from its case, offering it to the Pharaoh, who took it carefully.  
"I cannot sense anything wrong with it, no magic, no...anything. It is just how I last saw it, what do you mean, when you say the items have been acting strangely?" 

He place the puzzle back down carefully, and turned to Ishizu. As they were talking, Yami stepped closer to the Puzzle, frowning. There was definitely something...something pulling him closer, but he couldn't tell what. An urge to take it...to put it over his neck.  
As he lifted it up, Atemu turned to him, frowning warily.  
"Yami..." The other man raised a hand to quiet him, caressing the Puzzle with the other. He was...it was beautiful. He could feel himself getting drawn further and further in.  
"My Pharaoh, he's fading away!" Ishizu said quickly, and Atemu moved to grab the Puzzle away from Yami, knocking him to the floor. Suddenly his legs returned to normal, looking sturdy, and less transparent.

"No Atemu, it's fine. I want it back, give me it back" He muttered, reaching out to grab it. Atemu shook his head warily, placing it back down in the case, and moving to him.  
"No, I don't think we're going to do that. Come on, let's move to another room" Yami tugged against him, still drawn to the Puzzle, still in a trance.

But when the Puzzle was out of sight, he returned to normal, snapping out of it instantly.  
"So, are we going to see the Items? I mean it might just be nothing right?" He turned to Atemu, who raised an eyebrow.

"We just went to see the Puzzle Yami, do you not remember? The Rod and The Ring are missing, and you were drawn to the Puzzle, you were fading away Yami, like it was...using your life force. I do not know what is up, but I do not want you anywhere near it at the moment, for your own safety obviously."  
Yami frowned, rubbing the back of his head.  
"But...wait...we went in? I can't remember a thing. All I remember is...well us walking here, you're sure we went in?"  
Both Ishizu and Atemu glanced at each other, before nodding. Something was definitely up.  
"Yami, I'm going to need you to wait out here, please. We don't want to risk losing you. For your own safety, Ishizu, will you keep him company?"  
"Of course My Pharaoh" She bowed her head softly, and Atemu nodded, before going back into the room.

Yami sighed, sitting down on one of the chairs.  
"So I really lost it? That is strange, it's never happened to me before. I'm not sure why. I...as soon as I went into the room?"  
Ishizu nodded, sitting down next to him.  
"The items have been acting rather odd, glowing, some people have reported seeing shadows, something is going on between them. It is the whole reason I brought the pair of you in. If you are having a negative reaction to them, maybe it is something to do with yourself?"  
"Do you think the Spirit of the Ring, and the Rod, might also be affected?" He frowned, watching the door, for any signs of Atemu.  
Ishizu could only sigh, shaking her head.  
"I am not sure. But this is definitely not the end of this. Of that I am certain. We need to be prepared, something bad might happen, I do not know what to expect"

Atemu came out hours later, rubbing the back of his neck.  
"I took a look, and thought of as much as I could to try and fix it. They don't seem to be reacting as badly any more, so my magic seems to have done something. Also the Puzzle is responding to me again, which is good. Not as...bad as what happened to Yami though, I am not sure, if it is because there is three of us, that it responds to the one that was in contact with it the longest. I still need to figure it out"  
Yami nodded, and Ishizu pushed herself up elegantly.  
"Ishizu, now tell us about Marik, we know you do not wish to discuss the topic, but we want to help, and the only way we can do that, is by getting as much information as possible"

Ishizu gave a soft sigh, and a nod.  
"It happened about...beginning of November I would say? Marik was...acting odd, but he refused to say why. He was more guarded, and quiet. We thought it was just a phase, he has been like that before. So we thought it would pass. But...but he spent a lot more time in the house, or by me or Odion, refusing to go out alone. Then one day...he just...disappeared. Again, he has done this before, so we thought he just needed some time to himself. He hasn't been the same since that dark spirit, he likes to take time to think. But...after a week...well I guess we knew something was wrong. I have not seen him since, and then, a few weeks later, the Rod and the Ring go missing. So I can only assume it's those spirits, up to no good again"  
Yami sighed, and gave a nod.  
"Makes sense, it was what they were drawn to the most. Ryou...has disappeared as well. We thought it was Bakura, the Spirit of the Ring. But...it was Marik's dark-half. He took Ryou from right under our noses. So he has grown far more powerful than we expected. We have to get Ryou back, and Marik. I feel...so sorry for them"  
Ishizu wrapped her arms around herself, and Yami placed an arm on her shoulder.

"We will get them back Ishizu, I promise. We wont let them get the best of us"

She smiled softly, and nodded.  
"I know, I trust you all so much. I believe we can bring them to safety, but we need to work together." Atemu nodded his head in agreement.

Bakura gave a roll of his eyes, pushing himself up from the wall, and slipping back into the shadows. So...they knew they had the others, and they knew they had the Rod and the Ring, well this was interesting news, so they knew they were around...but they didn't know where they were. Perfect.  
He climbed back up the ladder, and over the rooftops. He had to meet Akefia at the docks, to make sure everything was running smoothly. He had been in that Museum for far too long, and risked being caught. The Pharaoh was stupid, but not that stupid.

-x-

Akefia and Bakura arrived home a few hours later, to Malik pinning Marik angrily against the wall.  
"I don't care Marik. You do as I say, no ifs, no buts. I want you to translate this for me, and I want you to do it quickly!" He slammed the book into Marik's chest, who fell to the ground, giving a loud cough.

"Please Malik, I don't even know if I can decipher this language. It's not hieroglyphics, I don't even know what this language is!"

"Well get studying, I want it translated, and I want it done now!" With that he dropped Marik to the ground, who grabbed the book and scampered through to another room. Bakura chuckled dumping a bag of food on the table.  
"Getting on with your Hikari Malik?" Malik shot him a glare, and shrugged.  
"Is it really that obvious? Your Hikari on the other hand, delightfully obedient. Gives excellent massages as well, I should ask for them more often~"  
"You didn't" Bakura tensed up, glaring at Malik, who had that disgusting grin on his face again.  
"Well, he responds far better to threats than I imagine he would, he is just so delightful Bakura, you should let me play with him more."  
"Where is he Malik?" Bakura snarled, Akefia took the chance to slip past, grabbing an apple from the bag. With Bakura and Malik tormenting each other, he slipped into the laundry room, where he saw Ryou curled up in the corner.  
"Are you alright little one?" He muttered, sitting down next to him, offering the apple. Ryou took it with a small thanks.  
"He didn't hurt me, if that's what you were thinking. But he...he made me kiss him, and...touch him. I don't like him at all" Akefia nodded, running a hand through the others hair.

"Don't tell Bakura, I...I don't want Bakura to know anything. He's bad enough as it is, I don't want to make it worse. They will just fight, and I'll have to clean up afterwards. No, just...keep it between us, okay? Please Akefia"  
The other froze, before nodding softly. "Of course, as you wish. Bakura is looking for you. I suggest you go out and see him, tell him you're okay. He seems angry"

"Yes okay Akefia, thank you for the apple" He smiled, putting it on the book beside his makeshift bed, before slipping out of the laundry room.

Bakura smirked when he saw Ryou, looking over him. "I do not want you to give this...demon anything else, okay? You do not belong to him, you belong to me" Ryou flinched, and lowered his head.  
"I'm sorry Bakura...I didn't mean to make you angry" Akefia appeared from behind him.  
"I should not have left him alone with the demon, I am sorry Bakura. I was follow your orders. Perhaps it would be better not to leave Ryou alone?"  
"But then we would never get anything done...You!" He turned to Malik, snarling under his breath. This was awkward, this made things far more difficult. He didn't like the idea of Malik touching his Ryou.  
"Better idea, we shall lock Ryou in our room when we are away, that way he cannot get in, and Ryou will be safe" The younger whitette groaned silently. Great, just great. Was he meant to stay in Bakura's room all day now? That was unfair. First imprisoned in a house, then thanks to Malik he was going to be imprisoned in a room. But of course, like always he said nothing, just moved to grab the bag of food from the table to put away.

"No no, no need to do that. I will leave him alone. I promise, don't be too harsh on sweetheart over there, he was only doing what I told him to do. He also helped Marik. He is very kind, and helped fix my wounds, as he did Akefia's. I was taking advantage, I wont touch him, I give my word"  
"Really? Your word?" Bakura said sarcastically, looking over to him lazily, there was no way on Earth he could trust this monster.

"Well of course, I do not want Ryou to spend his days in your room, that would be cruel, even for me. Besides, who would have dinner ready by the time we return home? I will leave him, it's alright. You can have him all to yourself"

Ryou relaxed visibly, and continued putting the food away, Bakura looked from him to Malik, before nodding.

"Fine, I'll trust you...this time. Anyway, what are you having Marik translate?" Malik's eyes lit up, and he pulled a paper from the table.  
"Took me a long time to find this, but the Millennium Spellbook, the one that was used to forge the items, was not the only Spellbook in existence. This other book, that I have found, was known only as _The Book of the Dead._ It is said to have spells for everything, so I thought I would take a look, see if it works, or if it is a lot of rubbish. After all, it may have the spell we are looking for to control the Pharaoh."

"Oh, that is what I had to tell you about. The Pharaoh knows of me and you, and Malik and Ryou have been captured by us, they also know we have the Rod and the Ring"

Malik groaned, falling into his chair with a sigh.

"Great, they are not as stupid as they look, well we have to speed up production then. I am not sure how quick we can get this area all set up. I am still putting all the shadow-magic talismans around it so they will not detect us. It is still going to take months before it is ready, and we still need to get the objects to bind the Pharaohs soul"

"Hmm, turns out it is not the Pharaohs soul we need. Akefia doesn't have any reaction to the Millennium Ring, apart from a slight boost in shadow-magic, for me however it works as normal. I witnessed the same with the Pharaoh and his counterpart. We need to kidnap the Spirit. Not the Pharaoh. The Spirit has a strange reaction to the Puzzle, like it was draining his life force. We can use that, I am sure of it" 

Ryou listened carefully. Why did they want Yami though? What were they planning? He finished putting the food away, and moved to make Bakura a coffee, something the man had been addicted to ever since he became a mortal.  
"Fine, we can easily alter the plan. It is quite easy to tell the Pharaoh and the Spirit apart, but what about the light and the Spirit?"  
"We can always take both, the Pharaoh is protective over his Hikari, it will be interesting to see how he manages without him in the modern world" Malik smirked at that idea, relaxing further in his chair.  
"I like it, good thinking, another way to torment the Pharaoh, just what we need. I want him to suffer. He should be the one sent to the shadow realm, to know what it is like"

Ryou brought the cup of coffee over to Bakura, who took it carefully. "If you are done, you can go back to your room. We need to talk about things, Akefia, go with him, and keep an eye on him" Akefia nodded, and Ryou was led back into the laundry room.

"They're planning something bad, aren't they? That they obviously don't want us to hear. Ugh, I wish I could just..." Akefia said nothing, sitting on the windowsill in the corner, staring out the window. Ryou watched him for a minute or two, before sitting down on the bed.  
"I'm glad they are not shutting you in Bakura's room permanently, I thought that would be a bit ridiculous myself. But once Bakura has something in his mind, it is unlikely he is going to change that opinion" Ryou nodded, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I hate him you know, I really...just want to be left alone. My life was going perfectly, then he returns. I mean...why does he want me here? I am no use to him, or his plans. He gains nothing from tormenting me. I just...sorry...I understand you're in the same boat"  
Akefia nodded, before glancing to Ryou.  
"He wants power, and control. He doesn't have many people he has power over right now. So he chooses the ones he knows he can definitely control, me and you. It is unfair, but it is how things are going to be, we know we can't escape, so I suggest we just...get along with him as best we can, and do as we're told. The less likely we are at getting punished"  
"I know Akefia, thank you. I just...I wish I wasn't stuck here, I want to be home, with my friends."  
"And I do not want to be here at all, but fate is cruel, and Bakura is even worse"


	7. And King of Shadows

_'The Pharaoh is here, all rise.'_ _Came a loud voice, men, women, children stood from their seats, clapping, cheering, full of joy.  
Festivities were in the air, he could feel the gold jewellery heavy on his body. His crown resting neatly in his hair. The picture of elegance, a God. The sun was shining, warm. A perfect day for this address.  
_

_'My people, thank you for your kind welcome. Please, enjoy the celebration of Ra, eat, drink and be merry! The time of worship is upon us, remember our glorious God, and be thankful for all that we have' He heard the words come out of his mouth, a smile caressing his tanned features, this was how life should be like. Respected, and loved by all._

_Suddenly, the sky turned grey, shadows touched the sandstone, the crowd did not stop celebrating, but he could feel...sense something different. The vision, his kingdom vanished before him, piece by piece disappearing from his sight, before he was left alone, in the darkness._

_'What Sorcery is this? What is happening?!' He could hear his voice, anger, terror, he could feel the emotions, but the body...was not his own._

_'You enjoy this power~' A soft hiss came from the darkness, echoing around him. _

_'You wish for more, do you not? The Puzzle, find the Puzzle, it belongs to the true King of Egypt. That is you, it is so obvious you are the rightful leader? Someone who deserves to sit on the throne, not only Egypt, the world. Imagine what you could do, people would cheer your way, celebrate your existence. You, deserve it all'_

_'Who goes there?!' Yami stepped towards the voice, he would not show fear, he would not, he was the great Pharaoh of Egypt, a God, no one could hurt him._

_'Why, I am you. You were born from the Puzzle, from the shadows that lurk inside. The Great Pharaoh, Atemu takes that title, but you know it rightly belongs to you. A being of pure shadow-magic, of pure wonder and myth. You deserve the world, my Pharaoh' The echo returned, haunting his thoughts, his vision clouded._

_'Just think of the joy you could bring those you love. The protection and the wealth you could offer. Everyone would bow before you, do you not think so?' An image of him, striding through a palace of marble, people bowing before him, the Thief, Atemu, Kaiba collapsing to the ground when he walked past. Such power he would hold, and Yuugi. The vision turned to Yuugi, at the end of the hall, smiling, happy. All for himself. Covering him with kisses, he could protect him._

_'All you need to do, is get the Puzzle, give in to the magic inside, and you could be a King, a God. Let the shadows in, let them take control.'_

_Suddenly, he was whisked back to that moment, with Ishizu and Atemu, the Puzzle drawing him towards it. He had a sudden craving for it, he wanted it back. They couldn't protect it like he could, they couldn't get the power from it, like he could. He would be King again, King of shadows, and mortals. The perfect person to rule, no one deserved the power like he did, not Atemu, not anyone._

With a gasp he shot up from the bed, no, no what was he thinking? The lure of the Puzzle, why did he crave it's power? He did not want to be a Pharaoh, he didn't want to rule over all, that wasn't him. Not any more, Atemu was the one who ruled long ago, and he had enjoyed his time as the King of Games in this world, but...he was happy now, and settled.  
He scanned the dark room, noticing Yuugi, and Atemu both fast asleep in their respected beds. He sighed and pushed himself up carefully, slipping out of the room. Yuugi had been stressed over losing Ryou, they had finally managed to get him to fall asleep regularly, he had been refusing to eat and sleep, spending every waking moment trying to find him. Tea was a mess as well, constantly fretting and cleaning, making tea and worrying. The kidnapping had taken its toll on all of them, but he just didn't feel it. Even Atemu was different, cursing regularly, getting irritated easily. Ryou calmed them all down, but he just, didn't seem to care.

...why did he want the Puzzle? Seeing it had caused him to think about it again. True he hadn't thought about it since he arrived, the gold object hanging around his neck...why hadn't it entered his mind. But now, it was all he could think about. He touched the place it used to sit, on his chest, frowning softly. The longing was there, the urge to regain the power, that was once his to control.

With a sigh he ran his fingers through spiked hair, before rubbing the back of his neck.

"Can't sleep?" The soft voice startled him, and he turned to see Atemu standing in the door. His doppelgänger. Identical in so many ways, apart from the difference in skin colour. And in voice. Yami had Yuugi's accent, and a slightly deeper, coarser voice. Atemu's was heavily accented, different than expected.

"Nothing gets past you, hmm? Yes, I have been having problems sleeping. Nightmares"

Atemu placed a hand on his shoulder, giving a soft smile.

"Do you wish to talk about it? We both witnessed what happened with the Puzzle...though you have no recollection? Something is wrong, it does not react to me any more, though I still have my shadow-magic. It seemed to react far too well to you. Something is wrong with the items." Yami nodded, frowning heavily. It was true, he could sense a disturbance in all of them, none so much as the Puzzle however.

"You said the magic had vanished from them...a couple of months ago? That does not seem to be the case. It seems to have..._shifted_. I am not sure I understand it myself, before we could tell the alignment. It was obvious they were powerful, but they could be controlled. Now, it is like they have a mind of their own. I am not sure what has happened, or if it was always like that. But...there is definitely something wrong. I wish to go back and study them."  
"But you saw how the Puzzle reacted around you. You could be lost to us. Yuugi has already lost Ryou, I am not sure he could handle losing you as well."

Yami rolled his eyes, giving a soft smirk.

"We both know he is closer to you Yami, do not try to kid yourself. You have seen the way he looks at you just as much as I have. It is obvious, Yuugi may have matured, but he is still not very good at hiding his feelings." Yami snorted at that, and nodded.

"He never has been, ah. He is so innocent sometimes it surprises me all that we have been through together. Yes, yes you are right Atemu. I ask you then, would you check on the items again? I can sense something is wrong. But, well not only can I not get close, but...to be honest with you I have been wanting the Puzzle back. Not that I planned to take it obviously, I would never do that. But this..._urge_, the desire to feel it's power once more. It feels like it is trying to change my alignment. I would never betray you all, you understand that. Just...I want to feel it against my chest once more, hold it's power. Keep it safe."

Atemu frowned, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Well, something has definitely shifted then. We will have to research it more. I mean there is no way this can just be a coincidence. Come on, you should rest. We will have to look at this more in the morning." The other nodded, moving to climb back up the stairs.

"Thank you for listening Atemu, it does help having someone to discuss with these things, that is not Yuugi. I mean I care for him and all, but he is already so worried about his friend, I could not bring extra stress onto him. He would probably collapse."

The hand was placed on his shoulder once more, and Atemu gave a kind smile.

"Of course, we were once the same person many years ago. Helping each other should come naturally to us. Besides, I consider you a brother. The situation kind of helps with that obviously" Yami chuckled softly, and nodded.

"Yes, thank you though Atemu, I really mean it. It helps"

-x-

The house was woken up early on a Sunday morning to the phone ringing, well multiple phones ringing. Tea managed to grab hers first, groaning quietly to herself.

"Tea? I am so sorry to bother you this early. It is the items, they have gone missing" Ishizu's voice sounded panicked, and close to tears.

"Wow what? Wait Ishizu, the items? Are you alright?" She shot up, moving to knock on Yuugi's door, not surprised to see him already standing there.

"Y...yes I...I am fine. Marik's dark half, he...he just scares me so much."  
"You saw him? Ishizu are you all right? What did he do to you?!" Atemu's eyes furrowed into a glare, and Yami was already grabbing his coat.

"N...nothing too bad, just...a few bruises. He had Marik with him. Oh Tea...he...he looks terrible, I...I couldn't even protect my brother." She was so close to crying, Tea frowned.

"We're on our way, you are at the Museum, yes?" Soft sobs on the other end caused her to frown further. Poor Ishizu.

"S...Sorry, yes...yes I am here. Thank you Tea"

By the time she got off the phone, everyone was awake, and surrounding Yuugi's door. Tea gave a soft sigh, putting the phone down.

"Marik's dark-half stole the items, Ishizu is hurt, she says not too badly, but I don't believe that. Apparently Marik was with him, and looking awful. We need to go to the Museum, now."

Yami nodded, running down the stairs.

"Come on then, we cannot leave her alone to suffer anyway. Poor Ishizu. We need to show our support. I cannot believe he would do that to her. He must be planning something with the items. Now he has them, he will not wish to give them up."

They arrived at the museum rather quickly, the place was closed, but Tea used her key card to get in, dashing to Ishizu's office. The woman was covered in bruises, her wrists looked the worst, her clothes were in ruins.

"Ishizu?!" Tea ran up to her, kneeling beside her.

"Oh...forgive me for being like this, and in this state. I apologize my Pharaoh" She nodded her head to Atemu, who shook his own head.

"Oh no, do not apologize to me. Are you alright? Please, never worry about my opinion Ishizu. Not when you are in this state." He gripped one of her hands.  
"Me and Joey can run to your place and get you some things if you want Ishizu" Duke offered. Ishizu smiled softly, before sighing.

"I do not wish to trouble you any more, but that would be wonderful. Thank you so much for your generosity, and thank you all for coming here so quickly. He is...he is far more powerful than I gave him credit for...and far more monstrous. Forgive me if I do not speak of the...the cruel acts he did. I would rather not wish to remember them"

"Oh no, Ishizu I'm so sorry. I wish we could do more to help" Tea frowned. Tristan gave a soft snarl.

"He shouldn't be going around hurting people! Oh I just want to cave his face in. How dare he." Ishizu shook her head, smiling.

"Again, thank you for your emotion, I know it means well. But Marik's dark-side has always been malicious. Luckily enough in Marik he had some restraint. Now he has his own body, and powers beyond which I expected...who knows what he is planning. But it will involve you my Pharaoh, maybe all of you. You must keep safe"

Yuugi then came in through the door, bottles of water and some food from the nearby vending machines.  
"I'm sorry it is not the most substantial food, but this will help Ishizu, how long have you been like this for?"

Ishizu looked at the clock, before sighing.  
"I am not sure. I came in to the office because I had some work to do, and I tend to work better during the early mornings. Well of course beforehand, I had the strangest urge to check on the items. Just...a feeling you know? Anyway, so I heard a noise, looked in and there he was. Well both of them. Marik must have said something to anger him, as well...I witnessed him being thrown quite harshly against a wall. Then the demon noticed me...and...and" She stifled a sob, and Tea couldn't help but rub her shoulder comforting.

"It is okay Ishizu, you do not have to tell us any more if you don't want to. Just, relax. We're here now. Though you should really see a doctor, these bruises are...awful"

Ishizu shook her head quickly, giving another soft smile.

"Thank you again for your concern, but I would rather not be asked a lot of questions about my condition. No bones are broken, I am okay, they are wounds that will heal. I just...I wish I could have done more. I feel so weak, and helpless. He just, caused me to freeze. I have not seen him since...since well the Battle City Finals. But then I had the necklace protecting me. So I was not too worried. He...he is so unpredictable now, without my ability. I just...I am terrified of him"

"Mind if we go check the room where the items were, Tristan, would you mind checking the security footage? We could get a good idea of what he looks like, and how Marik is. Maybe he says something?" Tristan nodded, and Ishizu told him where it would be. Atemu, Yami and Yuugi went to the Item room, Yuugi following behind them quickly.

"Marik's dark half is going to be causing a lot more problems for us, is he not?" Yuugi sighed, rubbing an arm.

"Poor Ishizu, I wish we were here to help her. I feel...I feel so useless. We are no closer to finding out where they are, and here he is, hurting our friends, and stealing...something bad is going to happen, I just know it." Atemu groaned, walking into the room with the items. It was barren, all the items had been taken. He examined the cases, Yuugi scanned the walls and Yami sighed.

"There is no way to know what to look for. I can sense they are not here any more, but that is nothing we already know. If only we had been here sooner!"

Atemu frowned, glancing over to Yami.

"But we were not, and we cannot change the past my friend. You know that as well as I do. We need to find any evidence we can to trace Marik's dark half back to the hole he is hiding."

"Well I am not sure about that evidence, but this blood could be an indication of something" Yuugi frowned, pointing to the glass case that had been smashed.

"Of course, Marik's dark half is not a spirit any more, he is just as mortal as me and Yami. Well that helps, it shows he can be hurt just like the rest of us, though I doubt that would stop him."

They heard footsteps, and Tristan came dashing in.

"You...You guys gotta see this" He panted, obviously out of breathe, Atemu looked to Yuugi and Yami, before they followed him to the security room. The video was paused on a picture of Marik and his dark half.

Tristan played the video, they watched as the two entered the room, Marik being dragged rather forcefully in.

"See, this was far easier than expected. I was thinking Bakura was exaggerating when he said it would be rather difficult to break in, those guards were nothing" Tristan paused it, pointing to another screen, where three security guards lay, blood surrounding them.

"Oh no, those poor men" Yuugi whispered.

The video started playing once more, and they could see Tristan visibly wince at what was coming.

"Malik, please, just stop this. Come on" Marik whispered, and Malik grabbed him by the back of the neck, slamming him roughly against one of the cases, causing it to break.

"Look at that Marik, you are of some use after all. I knew it would be a good idea to bring you" He sneered cruelly. Marik groaned in pain, collapsing to the ground.

"Oh stop overreacting, it is not that bad." Malik started grabbing the items, storing them away, before he noticed the Millennium Rod start glowing. Malik frowned, grabbing it from his coat, before wincing in pain, dropping it to the ground.

"What the hell?! It must have a reaction to all the other items being in the room. Ugh this makes things complicated, they're already rather unstable." He lifted a piece of paper from another part of his coat pocket, muttering quietly to himself, an incantation. Marik pushed himself up shakily, using the wall as support.

The items seemed to glow blue for a split second, Tristan paused it, and Yami and Atemu looked curiously.

"So, he must have a reaction to his item as well. See he was fine when it was away from the other items. They must be unstable together, and he has found a way to deal with that" Yami frowned.

Atemu nodded.

"After all, it would not make sense you the only one getting a reaction from it. Maybe the Spirit of the Ring is suffering the same problem? Because Marik did not seem affected, like me. While Marik's dark half was immediately drawn to them. Though that could be possibly because he has a goal in mind."

Tristan continued the video, and they watched as Marik said something else, to taunt Malik. Malik got angry, and slammed him against the wall, just as Ishizu stepped in. Yami took the chance to grab Yuugi, leading him out of the room.  
"We do not wish to see what happens to her. You know that as well as I do. We shall let Atemu watch it" Tristan stepped out moments later.

"I'm sorry guys, I can't. I feel awful for Ishizu." Yuugi gave a soft smile, patting Tristan's arm.

"It's okay, no one wants to see their friend in such an awful state. Poor Ishizu"

Atemu called them back in when it was over, and Tristan stopped the video. Atemu turned to Yuugi and Yami.

"So, we know the items can be controlled, and Marik's dark half knows how to do it. We need to find out how he is managing to control them, and where he has taken them. He could not have gone that far, with so many items, as well as Marik being difficult. There's still some fight in him, which is wonderful. It means his spirit is not broken yet, and it means Ryou could be doing alright as well. However, we do not know if the Spirit of the Ring and Marik's dark half are truly working together, or just helping one another for this...whatever they are planning."

Tristan rubbed his neck.

"If I were a crazy evil person, I'd hide somewhere in the city, unnoticed. I mean in a down town area, but close enough to get to places without causing much fuss" Yami nodded, smiling at Tristan.

"We should be able to find him. They're not that smart" Tristan chuckled and gave a thumbs up and a wink.

"No doubt about it, I'm sure it wont take long."

When they came back through into Ishizu's office, they noticed Ishizu in new clothes, and talking with the others.

"Right, so we have figured out, Marik's dark-half has a way to control the items-!" Atemu stopped as Yami stepped forward.

"Sorry Atemu, I have just had an idea." Atemu shrugged and nodded his head, and Yami continued.

"I am drawn to the Puzzle, a lot more now than previously. Let's get that out of the way first. I am not sure why, me and Atemu are still trying to figure that out. They have the Puzzle. If...I am drawn to it, I should be able to track it down, correct?"  
Atemu gave a smirk, and Yuugi's eyes lit up.

"We can find Marik and Ryou?" He smiled, they all turned to each other, smiles on their faces. Yami nodded.

"But, we need a plan, no doubt Marik's dark half has this...'base of operations' well guarded, remember he has the Rod, so that means he could have his mind slaves back as well. We do not wish to bring harm to innocent people." Yuugi frowned, and the others nodded. Tea gave a shudder.

"I would hate to be like that again, wouldn't you Joey? It was...weird"

Joey shrugged.

"Yeah, it certainly wasn't good. I still have nightmares where I'm not in control of my own body. Well, we can think of a plan now. Let's make sure we're all working together. That way they wont get the best of us!"

"Of course Joey, we work best as a team, remember?" Yami smirked.

"There is no way they can beat us now."


	8. Prisons have more than bars

The room was pitch black when he awoke, apart from the light of the moon peeling through the thin curtains. Groggily he glanced at the tower clock outside his window..._4am_

With a sigh Ryou turned over, before gasping. Two crimson eyes were watching him eagerly, a smirk spread across the demons face.

"Hello beautiful, nice to see you're awake. Get up!"

Ryou clambered up as fast as he could at the order, and Bakura ran a finger down his cheek.

"Look at you, so beautiful in the moonlight. I should just keep you like this, all for me~ My precious light half." He ran his fingers harshly through the others hair, before pulling him into a harsh and biting kiss, causing his bottom lip to bleed. Ryou whimpered, but did not pull back. Letting him kiss him.

When Bakura did pull back, he saw the demons tongue skirt across his lips, tasting the blood.

"We need you to come check on a wound, and fix it up. Be a dear"

Ryou followed Bakura carefully into the living room, noting Malik still up, lazing in the chair, flicking through sheets of paper. Marik was in a corner, head buried in his arms, an uncomfortable position to sleep in for sure. He noticed the Millennium Puzzle in Malik's other hand, as he muttered quietly to himself. So they got the items...that was not reassuring in the slightest.

The room was dimly lit by a flickering light-bulb, and a few candles scattered around the place. Not that it mattered, he saw Malik look up when they entered, and smirked.

"Well well, sleeping beauty is awake. You promised I get a turn with him Bakura, in return for those things from the museum." He pointed to the other side of the room, where a box was. So Bakura had wanted something else from the museum? Wait...a turn?! Ryou turned to Bakura, shock on his face. Bakura said nothing, nodding to Malik.

"Yes yes, I know the deal. He's here to fix your pathetic excuse for a light-half up though. I said next Saturday remember, when I'm away? I have to deal with those...idiots who think their territory is in the North part of the city."

"And you think you can handle that on your own?" Malik smirked, and Bakura shrugged, spinning a knife in his hand.

"They will never know what hit them, and when we take control of that area, we can move quicker. I do not wish to _deal_ with suspicious mortals. Besides, I have the Ring, and with that I am unstoppable."

This was...not a good thing. A whole day with Malik, doing whatever he wanted. Akefia was nowhere around to say otherwise, not that he could...actually. Oh no, he didn't like this at all. What was he going to do to him? What had he to expect? What day was it now? He had no idea how long he had been stuck in this house. Or how much time had actually past...he knew basic hours, but that was it.

"Hmm, fine fine. Carry on. I only hurt him a little bit, but he's acting like it is such a big deal. Who knew he would be a drama-queen" Ryou rolled his eyes.

"I did tell you he was mortal, we can't be thrown around like that, and you know it. What did you do to him this time?!" He snapped, and both Bakura and Malik looked at each other.

"Wow, someone has a tongue on him. Nice to see you still have some fire in you" Malik chuckled, standing up. Bakura however, glared at Ryou, causing him to step back a little bit.

"Go then, fix him up. Then I will talk to you about your attitude" Bakura snarled, and Ryou moved to grab the first aid kit quickly. Great, now he had really messed up.

He walked over to Marik, kneeling down next to him.

"Marik? Come on, I need to see your wounds" He muttered softly, and Marik raised his head. He saw the cuts and bruises all across his face and hands, down his back...He must be freezing without a shirt, but it was probably another punishment from Malik.

"Oh God, what happened..." He whispered, cleaning the wounds carefully, watching Marik wince now and again. He watched Bakura and Malik head over to the items, and cleared his throat.

"Ishizu...is hurt badly. He..." Marik cleared his throat quietly, trying to stop a sob...

"He...raped her..." That took so much effort, he rubbed Marik back as he gave a soft gasp, keeping as quiet as possible.

"I...I...I couldn't protect her...m...my own sister Ryou! T...the...the monster" He buried his face back in his arms, sobbing quietly.

Poor, poor Marik, and poor Ishizu. That was awful news. He could hear Bakura and Malik laughing in the background, but kept quiet.

"Marik, I need you to lift your head. Come on, please. Let me clean you up. I'm so sorry about what happened. I...I wish I could do more to help" Marik shook his head, and sighed softly looking up at him, letting him clean his wounds.

"It's okay Ryou, I couldn't even protect her, and I was there. I...I...I had to watch it" He gave a soft hiccup, and Ryou rubbed his shoulder.

"It's not your fault Marik. Please don't think it's your fault. He's a monster, he's cruel and sadistic and...please Marik" He cleaned the wounds carefully, fixing him up as much as he could. Before he let him return to resting his head in his arms, soft sobs shaking his entire body. He was thinner, frailer. They both were. He ran his fingers through the others hair softly.

"I wish I could help more Marik. I really do" He pushed himself up carefully, and walked back over to Bakura.

"Please don't hurt him, you're going to kill him Malik, and he really needs food soon. You don't want to kill him, do you?"

Malik shrugged, and sighed.

"Fine, fine. I'll look after him. Jeez, but not because I care or anything. Why, do you care about him Sweetheart? Have a little crush on him?" Ryou rolled his eyes, and put the first aid kit away.

"No, now can I go back to sleep? It's 4am" Bakura gave another smirk, he was smirking a lot this morning, and it always seemed to look sinister, and really freaked him out.

"Of course you can, come sleep in my room. It has been a long time since we shared a bed together, has it not? Come join me~ We'll have a talk about your attitude while we're there."

He was lead quite quickly into the bedroom, turning to see Malik's cruel smirk, before the door closed on him.

"P...please Bakura, I am sorry. Really, I am. I just...I've told him not to hurt Marik, he's going to kill him. I...I wont talk out again, I promise" His stuttering was rapid, and filled with fear. Bakura said nothing, giving a cruel sneer, tilting his head.

"Now now, you giving in so easily is not fun at all. Where's the fighting? You're still as pathetic as ever, aren't you? Aren't you glad I'm nothing like Malik, throwing Marik around like he is a doll? I treat you well, do I not? I look after you, and feed you."

_I feed you_ Ryou thought to himself, but stepped back when Bakura stepped closer. That didn't matter as Bakura aggressively pulled his hair, causing him to wince, with that he felt himself being thrown onto the bed rather abruptly, Bakura pinning him down.

"You are however, still so beautiful. I have missed looking at you, my precious Hikari." The demon joined their lips in a rough, and bruising kiss. Ryou couldn't struggle from it, as he felt the weight of the other...weight. Bakura was mortal...

He wasn't thinking straight when he kicked Bakura hard, causing the other to double back in pain. Ryou had enough space to jump up, and leap out of the room. There was no thought as he ran past Malik, and gasped as Akefia opened the door, sliding under his arm and down the stairs. Perfect timing, he was going to be free...There was no way this was a coincidence, he had to run, he had to escape.

He felt the cold air hit him as he dashed outside, and was about to turn the corner when Bakura jumped down in front of him, he turned to see Akefia blocking him from the other side...no..._no_.

"Well, that was completely unexpected. Looks like you still have a lot of fight in you, how delightful. I enjoy having someone to break" Bakura grabbed Ryou cruelly, dragging him back up the stairs, hand pressed roughly over his mouth to stop him yelling.

"Akefia, perfect timing, though if you hadn't opened the door he probably wouldn't have escaped in the first place" Akefia muttered a quiet sorry, and they opened the door, to see Malik still wide eyed.

"Well well, I never knew the sweetheart had it in him. I didn't expect that at all" Bakura nodded in reply, pushing Ryou forcefully into the bedroom. Ryou fell onto the floor, and watched as the door was closed and locked behind him. Oh god...oh no. He had made a huge mistake. He...he just wanted to be free, and now...now there was no way they would trust him outside of this room again.

He noticed the window open, but the drop was far too high...he could jump but there was no doubt it would kill him...but was it better than Bakura killing him?

No, no he couldn't do that. He was far too scared to even risk doing that...but wait, if Bakura came from this window, and jumped down...he was mortal right? How did he manage to do that?

He was about to glance out the window once more, when Akefia was shoved roughly into the room as well, a bruise forming on his face. Bakura slammed the door behind him locking both the door and the windows abruptly.

"The both of you, are trying my patience!" He snapped angrily, grabbing Akefia by the throat, shoving him forcefully against the wall. Akefia groaned in pain, but said nothing else. Keeping his head bowed.

"First Ryou tries to escape, then you tell me not to punish him?! Who is in control of who around here? What makes you think you give the orders?!" Ryou could see the hand tightening around Akefia's throat, and gasped.

"No Bakura, don't! Please stop" Bakura turned to Ryou, and he could tell he had just made the worst mistake. Akefia was dropped carelessly to the ground, gasping for air, before Bakura stepped over him and grabbed Ryou, forcing him onto the bed, pinning his wrists forcefully.

"No! Bakura! No! NO!" He yelled and cried struggling against the others hands, but Bakura said nothing. Akefia tried to stand up, but shadows suddenly loomed all around them, it caused both Ryou and Akefia to freeze. Both had witnessed this before, The Spirit of the Ring had power neither of them could master or understand. Without hesitation chains appeared either side of Akefia, trapping him to the ground. He tried to escape, tried to break free, but couldn't.

"I will deal with you after" Bakura muttered more to himself. Ryou was frozen in fear, but Bakura's features remained emotionless. Usually he would crack a grin, a sarcastic remark or tone, but there was nothing this time. Nothing but anger, and hatred. He had not seen this side of Bakura since...since the first battle...with Yami. The one he remembered so well, that swell of hatred, he could feel it himself, feel the pain it caused Bakura.

He felt nails dig into his skin, and tried to pull away again. This side of Bakura was different, absolutely terrifying.

"You, belong, to me. You do not escape...and you broke your promise" The smirk returned to Bakura's face as the realization dawned on him, and Ryou froze. Oh no, his promise. He had forgotten all about it. The only think preventing Bakura from hurting his friends... from hurting _Yuugi_.

They both seemed to share the same thought, as Bakura pushed himself up instantly.

"No no! Bakura don't hurt him, you can't please! Please I'm begging you" But his cries fell on deaf ears, as Bakura walked to the door, opening it.

"New plan Malik, we take the Pharaohs brat. That will lure them easily, and cause them to panic. He is the thing that keeps their precious friend group together after all. Besides, I imagine we can have some fun~" He heard a wicket cackle from Malik, and Ryou lowered his head to the bed, trying not to cry.

He endangered Yuugi, he was a stupid, idiot! His desire to escape...had now meant that Yuugi...was going to get in trouble. His heart was beating rapidly, what was Bakura going to do with him...or Malik. Both were..._horrible_...just pure evil.

With that Bakura returned to the bedroom, shutting and locking the door once more.

"I should thank you. You've made the task of luring them in far easier. Your disobedience means trouble for your friends. You should have thought about that before you decided to run away. Now you do not have a leg to stand on."

He grabbed him roughly, about to shove him off the bed when Akefia surged forward. The chains...had vanished? But Akefia...couldn't use shadow magic any more? Akefia wrapped his arms tightly around Ryou, before turning to Bakura.

"I want you to punish me instead. I do not wish for him to be hurt, please. Let me take his place." His voice was quiet, as he moved in front of Ryou, head bowed towards Bakura.

Bakura frowned, looking over Akefia.

"Give. It. Back" He muttered softly.

"King of thieves as well, I didn't even notice you took it, still got the skills, don't you Akefia?" The thief sighed softly, before handing him the Millennium Eye.

"I just needed it to get some magic, in this body, without an item I only have the very basics." Bakura smirked, before putting it away in a locked drawer.

"You two are really trying my patience, you know that right?!" He slammed Akefia roughly against a wall, before summoning the chains again, this time he made sure to wrap them tight around Akefia, strangling him, causing him to gag, and gasp for breathe.  
"You want to be punished instead? Fine, have it your way" He smirked, before he punched him hard in the face, causing Akefia to groan.  
Punch after punch was heard, as Bakura smacked Akefia as hard as he could. By the time he was finished, Akefia's head was rolling to the side.  
"Please! Bakura stop, he can't take any more...please" Bakura turned to him, tears were forming again in Ryou's eyes, and he smirked.  
"Why, do you care for him? Is precious Ryou all soft for the great King of Thieves? He deserves no love, especially none from someone like you. Fine, it's not like he's any use to me when he's all beaten up anyway." He moved to turn off the light, lying next to Ryou on the bed.  
"You will stay here, and not make a sound, understand? I don't want to wake up to you crying or what not" With that he sighed, and relaxed in the bed.

Ryou said nothing, and moved to quietly lie next to him. At least he had stopped hurting Akefia...poor Akefia.

-x-

"The brat is harder to get than I thought." Bakura heard Malik mutter, as they sat on a rooftop, looking into the large apartment. Yuugi was talking with Yami about something in the house, they watched as Yami ruffled his hair fondly, and Yuugi continue explaining with a lot of emotion.  
It was another night, and they had forced Akefia to keep an eye on the apartment for the past few nights, but now that he was out of commission, Bakura had to do it, and Malik had followed for the fun of it. 

"The Pharaoh is in another room, but he is not looking too happy, plus those _friends_ of his are lingering around. There is no way we will be able to take him tonight" They both looked to each other, before turning back to the apartment.

"So this is where they have been hiding? It's quite a nice place don't you think? Ryou was probably rather comfortable here." Bakura pulled his coat tighter around him as a cool breeze blew. Malik shrugged.

"Why does it matter? It's the home of the bastard. We should just kill him now, get it over and done with." Bakura glared at him.

"The Puzzle does not respond to us, the only one it responds to any more is the Spirit. We cannot kill the Spirit, and we have no chance of killing the Pharaoh if the Spirit is around. We both know how powerful he is, and I would rather not risk him finding that out for himself to be truthfully honest." Malik groaned, but sat back, watching as Yami hugged Yuugi tightly.

"Their displays of affection are rather sickening. Imagine if we were like that with our lighter halves." Bakura snorted and shook his head.

"Yeah, they'd walk all over us without a second thought. Yuugi at least has a stubborn bone in him however. Ryou is quite easy to overpower, and things are just not working out with Marik at all, are they?"

"No matter how much I knock the brat down, he still fights against me. I'm running out of ways to torture him without killing him, and I'd prefer not to kill him."

Bakura shrugged, glancing back over to Malik.

"You could try going the opposite way, start treating him really well, get him to at least slightly trust you, then break him. But I doubt that will work with the amount of pain you've caused him. I mean he doesn't even look at me, so I can't imagine how he reacts to you."

They both looked to the window when they saw the Pharaoh get up from his chair, and rolled his eyes as he walked past Yuugi and Yami.

He seemed to be beckoning Yuugi to come talk about something, which Yuugi was more than happy to do, Yami however, didn't seem too happy in the slightest.

"Do you detect hints of jealousy between the pair?" Malik asked suddenly, and Bakura nodded.

"Yeah, well I mean the Spirit had Yuugi all to himself, didn't he? And now he has to share the attention with the Pharaoh. I wouldn't be happy with that either, and we both know the Pharaoh has a superiority complex, he probably think everyone in that house belongs to him. You see the way he walks through, like he is King of the castle."

"Hmmm, maybe we'll get to witness a nice rivalry going on if we take the brat out of the equation. They seem to get along when the brat is around them, but I imagine emotions would run high when they lose their precious light-half."

It was Yami looking out the window that caused them both to duck down quickly.

"Still, this is a rather dangerous look out point, wouldn't you say? Couldn't you find a safer spot?" Bakura hissed and Malik gave him a smirk.

"Like you could do any better, we have perfect view of most of the rooms from here. There is not a better spot. Besides, don't you like the thrill of being able to spy on them right under their noses?"

"It doesn't matter about seeing all the rooms as long as we can see most of them. If we get caught then I for one wouldn't like to feel the Pharaohs rage. But I suppose, they are stupid enough to let the simplest things slip by them." Malik smirked, and looked back to the window.

"It's the Spirit we have to fear anyway. The Pharaoh is just as mortal as Ryou and Marik, we can easily push him around. The Spirit has more shadow-magic than you and me combined, and to go head to head against that will not be a good time for either of us"

"I'm sure with the Millennium Items we could take them rather easily." Malik nodded, before sighing.

"Yes, but now that we're suffering this mortality, using shadow-magic takes a greater toll on the body. I get exhausted after using large spells. So say we use the Millennium Items, and it doesn't work? It leaves ourselves wide open and powerless if the Spirit does realize his full powers" The demon glanced over to the window again, Yami had followed after the pair and they were talking happily to Yuugi.

"Or, maybe they're not as jealous as we imagined. At least we know their weakness is the brat, and with Ryou breaking his promise, we can do whatever we want to him."

"Hmm yes, I would like a piece of him anyway. Marik is fine and all, but it gets a bit boring causing pain and suffering to only one person, and you wont let me touch Ryou or Akefia. I mean me and Akefia could probably go head to head."

Bakura gave a chuckle and nodded.

"Hmm yes, but Akefia is used to a mortal body, you, not so much. Without using your shadow-magic, I doubt you will be much good at fighting"

"Hey! I resent that. I'll have you know I could stand my own." Malik frowned, standing up.

"Come on, they're distracted, we should try and look for weaknesses in their apartment"

"Shouldn't we wait until they're gone before we do that?" Bakura stood up after him, brushing himself down rather quickly, before glaring at Malik.

"No, where's the fun in that?" Malik's grin was manic, before he vaulted over the side of the building, landing on a lower roof.

_I'm going to get myself killed spending time with this...freak_ Bakura thought to himself, before following after him quickly.


	9. And one equals Four

_How do you know this plan is going to work?_ The voice echoed through his mind, as the rain fell heavily on his hood. Storms had been travelling through the city for the past few weeks, and the bitter cold was not something he found pleasant at all.

_The brat works for Priest Seth's counterpart. Luckily he is far too prideful to let the Pharaoh or the Spirit meet him to walk home. We have a clean shot, with the help of the Ring and the Rod, we'll get a boost of Shadow Magic, enough to topple the car and pull him out with ease_

Malik was crazy...he should have figured that out by now, all their jobs together, since Akefia was still looking worse for wear. Maybe he should not have hut him as hard...mortal bodies were difficult to predict, one minute they were durable, next minute shattering like glass.

He felt the Ring, cold and motionless, hanging from his neck. It was a comfort, like a barrier. Protecting him from harms way, it had been his prison for so long, and it remained so in some aspects. Pieces of his soul, a shadow-magic trick he had learned long ago, remained in there. There was no way, if he did die, he was going to be lost so easily. It brought him back multiple times, he just needed to keep using the spell...though he was running out of soul to use.

A sudden glint caught his attention, and he saw Malik on the other building. The car was coming, they had one shot. The streets were empty this rainy Sunday. No witnesses, no problems. Though he personally was not bothered if there were one or two victims. Nothing like cold blooded murder to brighten a day.

Bakura touched the Ring, reassuring himself that this plan would work...it had to work, if they failed then Yuugi would run home to the Spirit, and they would be caught out, then they would be farm more protective of the Hikari. So far it was their only weakness. The way the Spirit of the Puzzle, and The Pharaoh both obsessed over him. They had been watching for a while, the love and care shown, it was going to break them, and his friends. The glue keeping them all together.

Suddenly he saw Malik jump from his place, and followed after elegantly. Malik was the strongest, his power over the Rod was impressive. Even though Bakura had 'owned' the Ring for longer. Malik was completely at one with the magic his item possessed, like it was an extension of himself.

It all happened so fast, but he had to ignore his surroundings. Something he wasn't used to doing as a thief. His focus was on grabbing the Pharaohs...pet? A pillar of shadow-magic shot up from Malik's location, and Bakura couldn't help but open his eyes wide with shock. The other really had mastered this. There was no way he would be able to do something like that. The power though...was impressive.

There was no hesitation, the car flipped and Bakura moved quickly, using his swift footing, and the magic of the ring to propel himself forward. He yanked the car door open, smirking at the young man inside, gripping on for dear life. The minute his hand touched Yuugi's, he used all his magic to transport them both. True he couldn't go very far, but him and Malik had practised, and calculated roughly where Bakura would end up. It was, spot on, for the most part. A couple of meters away but still perfect for their estimate.

With no hesitation he gagged the young man, and tied his hands behind his back. When Yuugi was muzzled and secure, he took the chance to look over the light half.

"You really are so similar to him, aren't you? Look at that defiance in your face, the same fool-hearted expression he wears when about to break into one of his ridiculous lectures, of _love_ and_ friendship_. How pathetic" Yuugi struggled in reply, and Bakura gripped him tight, dragging him up. Malik would be too exhausted to use his magic to come to this spot, but they agreed to meet each other back at the apartment. Ryou and Marik were both secure in Bakura and Malik's rooms, so there would be no cause for concern. Nothing would get in their way, and by the time the Pharaoh and the others realized Yuugi wasn't showing up, they would have the place secure. It was only a matter of time before the Spirit of the Puzzle tracked down its whereabouts, so they had it moved to protect their own location...constantly moving actually. It was amazing how many people Malik actually had following him. He should be terrified of the amount of control he had over his shadow-magic.

-x-

The return home was rather uneventful. Yuugi struggled and Bakura had no choice but to lift him onto his shoulder. For a young man...Yuugi really wasn't that heavy. Then again he was a bit on the short side, that could play a part in it, and the only other weight he had to rely on was Ryou's...Ryou was definitely taller than Yuugi, so that would add to his weight.  
He made it back to the apartment, dragging Yuugi up the stairs brutally, forcing him into their place of residence. The young man stumbled back, and fell flat on his back, considering he couldn't use his arms or legs to reach out and support him, or keep him on balance.  
Akefia looked up from his place by the window, frowning softly.

"Is this him?" Bakura looked to him with a glare, and Akefia said nothing else, pushing himself up to move closer to the prisoner. He felt a surge of anger, gazing into amethyst eyes. The Pharaoh...the man that caused him years of pain...misery and suffering. This young man...looked _identical_ to him, in every way. Same eyes, same features...softer, he had to admit. Eyes less...crimson. But there was no doubt in his mind who this person reminded him of.

"I don't mind if you punch him you know~ Show him some _violence_. I'm sure Ryou would love to hear about how you tortured his friend"  
Those words caused Akefia to hesitate..._Ryou_. Ryou's friend, Bakura was right. This wasn't the Pharaoh, the man he had grown to despise. This was an innocent, like Ryou...like Marik. They were wrapped up in something far greater than they understood, a feud that had lasted millennia. He stepped back, and shook his head, returning to his place by the window. He couldn't look into the young man's eyes without feeling hatred, but he could control himself...stop himself from causing the innocent any harm.

Just as Bakura was about to say something, Malik stumbled in, giving a soft chuckle. He looked...bad. Dark tendrils of magic covered his arms, and his neck, seemingly trying to creep up to his face.  
"Are you alright? That looks...not very flattering" Bakura pointed out, and Malik fell on the chair.  
"Yes yes, the mortal body just needs to get used to the sudden intake of unnatural energy coursing through it. It will settle down and return to normal soon enough, I just need to pause and take a break But we did it, we caught the brat. Let me see him"  
Bakura dragged Yuugi up, who was still fighting and squirming. Malik purred, sitting up.

"Well then, he is a beauty as well, aint he? I will enjoy having some fun with him. You want your turn first, since you did such a good job" Bakura shook his head, dropping Yuugi to the ground.

"Fun is not what I had in mind, this brat is bait remember, and also reminds me ever so much of my worst enemy. You can have your fun, I just want to torture and break him. What would the Pharaoh say, when he sees his precious Hikari bowing before us, hmmm? Kissing our feet. It will be so simple, you could use the mind control that the Rod has."

Malik seemed to ponder the idea, before shrugging.

"Wouldn't you like to break him though. The Rod is the easy way out, we can use that and _bam_, he's ours. But, we could force him, make him beg, and plead for forgiveness. Make him want to kiss our feet, and ignore his friends. That would be far more fun to watch, don't you think?"

The pair seemed to think it over, before Yuugi struggled enough to break from Bakura's grip, gag falling from his mouth.

"You monsters! What the hell do you think you're doing?! Let me go!" He kicked out and Bakura grabbed him roughly to stop him. Yuugi glared defiantly at the white haired man, before he spat in the others face, causing Bakura to reel back.

"Why you little brat, try that again!" He snapped, smacking him hard across the face, causing Yuugi in his binds, to fall back again. However he didn't seem to care, as he tried to get back up, moving his hands to break free from the binds.

"LET ME GO! I don't know what you want, but you cannot keep me here! I will not be your _precious little pet_, I will not bow down and kiss your feet. You are underestimating me, like everyone does. Just because I don't have Atemu or Yami protecting me doesn't mean I can't stand up for myself! I have been through everything just as they have, I'm just as strong!" With that his hands slipped from the binds, and he pushed Bakura back from him.

Bakura surged forward, grabbing him roughly.

"You may think you're strong, brat. But I am far stronger than you will ever be" He pushed him to the floor, gagging him again as Yuugi tried to struggle against him. He was no match however, Bakura was definitely stronger than the younger man.

"I like your spirit though, very similar to your counterpart. The Spirit of the Puzzle seems to rubbed off on you. Or did you rub off on him?"

Yuugi tried to say something, and Bakura rolled his eyes.

"Well, what should we do to shut him up? Lock him in the laundry room?" Malik nodded, relaxing further in the chair, he looked absolutely exhausted.

"Yes, until we decide how to lure in his two lovers. It's getting late anyway, and I'm rather peckish, your light half could make us something to eat." Yuugi looked up at that, and started struggling again. Bakura did as he was told however, dragging Yuugi up, and shoving him into the laundry room, locking the door behind him.

"He has spirit, kind of like Marik. I imagine he is much more stubborn however, the Pharaoh always was. They are very similar to one another, full of righteousness and _oh everything about life is good_. So ridiculous.

"Of course it is. He thinks there is nothing but good in the world, they both don't understand that not everyone grows up privileged with a good life. People are tortured, abused, hurt. They've seen this first hand for themselves, yet still think oh life is good and wonderful...speaking of wonderful, do you mind getting sweetheart through here. I am...exhausted. I never thought it would be this bad, might put a dampener on our original plans. Using that much energy, in a mortal body, seems rather impossible...maybe I could get my immortal body back? There's got to be a spell in that book"

"How is Marik's translating going?" Bakura spoke as he unlocked the door to his bedroom. Ryou was asleep on the bed, Akefia had perked up when Ryou's name had been mentioned, eyes fixed on the bedroom door.

"Fine, I think. He has worked out the spell we need. Turns out it is not as different from Ancient Egypt as first imagined. I will get him to take a look for other spells, there has got to be one that makes casting shadow-magic drain less energy."

Bakura woke Ryou up rather harshly, grabbing him and dragging him from the bed. Ryou woke up in shock, before realizing it was Bakura...he was never going to get a moments peace with the Spirit around. Every hour it was something new, fixing wounds or making coffee, cleaning or cooking. He was a glorified maid. Massaging feet, running back and forward with trays of breakfast...this was nothing but torture, and the beatings he got from Bakura made him want to disobey less and less.

Bruising was forming up his side, scars covered his body...cigarette burns, he didn't even know Bakura smoked! Everything and anything to torture the young man, Bakura had thought of. Ryou dreaded if he found a new punishment to test on him.

He shakily stood in the doorway, waiting for the command from Bakura. Was he trembling? It felt like he was. Just being around either of these...monsters was starting to affect his sanity. He was shaking constantly, having nightmares.

_Back to how things were_ He thought to himself quietly. Before Yuugi and the others helped him, looked after him and made him feel safe, and at home. Now here he was, suffering the same problems he did two years ago. _Back to what he deserved._ There was no way he was going to be rid of Bakura...this demon. He would have to get used to the suffering...and constant fear.

Glancing over, he saw Akefia in the corner, and perked up instantly. It was rather odd their relationship. When they were both locked in the room, they got closer. Talking and laughing. Akefia was...safety, he protected him from a lot of Bakura's torture, suffering it himself. He cared a lot about Akefia, he had stuck up for him, lied to Bakura about problems for him. They were growing closer together, he liked being with Akefia.

Akefia gave him a soft smile, hopefully unnoticed by Bakura, which it was thankfully.

"Make us something to eat. Malik got some more food recently, so you have plenty to work with" Ryou winced at that, and moved over to the kitchen. Their definition of food and his definition of food were two entirely different things. They bought a lot of meat, and little of anything else. If anything else. What he wouldn't do for some nice fish, or fresh fruit.

But there was no way they'd even debate getting sensible things. The lack of nutrients would run them all down eventually.

"Oh and you better make something for our guest in the laundry room. We don't want him to die on us, I don't think the Pharaoh, or the Spirit would be happy if we killed their weaker half. Especially after only a day of having him" Those words caused Ryou to drop the plate he was holding, looking up to Bakura in shock.

"You didn't! No, not Yuugi. Bakura please, did you hurt him? Oh gods" He could feel tears forming again. He would rather suffer months of torture, than put Yuugi through the same thing. This was all his fault, he shouldn't have ran, he shouldn't have broke their deal. Now Yuugi and the others could be hurt, Bakura had no promises to stick to"

Bakura just grinned at the young man, shrugging.

"Well, we need bait. What better bait, than the glue that holds their little friend group all together. Everyone loves the Pharaoh's light half, everyone would do anything to protect pure innocent Yuugi. He's someone everyone loves. Well, I want to take away their friend, and cause him the same amount of pain and suffering that wretched Spirit forced me to endure!" His voice had grown louder, and Bakura slammed his fist against a wall, snarling quietly.

"I had to _deal_ with his idiotic speeches, and him ruining my plans for far too long. He destroyed everything! Even Zorc returning to this stupid world. I could have won! If he hadn't been in my way. I wouldn't have been sent to that Ra awful shadow-realm for however long. No, he has ruined my life, and Akefia's life. That Pharaoh is no better, flaunting around his power, considering himself King of the Mountain! Well no, I am going to show him what true loss feels like. I want him ruined!"  
Even Akefia had stepped back at Bakura's rant, they were looking at him in fear, Malik in mild amusement. That was the rage Ryou was used to, the rage he felt when the Spirit of the Ring fought the Spirit of the Puzzle for the first time, he remembered it well, the pain and the shear anger Bakura had. Of course he was going to get revenge, but Yami and Atemu were Ryou's friends, and so was Yuugi. Bakura was and had been nothing but a bother, a man who was cruel, and tortured him...he didn't deserve kindness.

Ryou moved into the kitchen, deciding to prepare some food. Bakura's rage seemed to die down, and he fell on the sofa, stretching carefully. The room was silent, apart from the noise coming from the laundry room, banging and muffled yelling. _Yuugi_, he wanted to help, he wanted to free him. Maybe if he was good...he could go see him, make sure he was alright.

He noticed Malik stirring, before pushing himself up, dark, purple tendrils covered his skin, Ryou had only just noticed them now. They looked like scars, faint scars that were etched in swirls and spirals. Could be mistaken for a tattoo rather easily, now that he thought about it. Maybe it was the shadow-magic, he had noticed it on Bakura's hands from time to time, when he used the magic. It seemed to be...infecting them? It was weird, there were subtle changes when they used magic. Bakura seemed...to relax? He seemed more exhausted, though he hadn't used it in large amounts for Ryou to actually take notice of the problem.

Malik walked over to his room, unlocking the door.

"Marik food, make yourself useful and help Ryou" He heard a soft stumble, and Marik slipped through the door rather quickly, wincing when Malik slapped him, and squeezed a butt cheek, before laughing cruelly.

Marik walked over to where Ryou was standing, watching as Malik sat back down, and started talking to Bakura about something.

"They've got Yuugi" Ryou muttered to him quietly, not looking up from his work, handing him some carrots and potatoes to peel and cut. Marik groaned softly, shaking his head.

"I knew they were up to something, Malik was being rather...crude last night. Going on and on about how much fun he was going to have with a little light. Should have known."

"It's my fault" Ryou whispered, giving a soft sigh, seasoning the meat, glancing up to see if Malik or Bakura were watching him, neither seemed to be, they were too distracted by their own conversation.

"I broke my promise to Bakura, I made a deal, to protect Yuugi and the others, and I broke that deal, all because I was too desperate to escape"

"Anyone would have done it Ryou, don't blame yourself. It's awful here, a prison is a prison. I would have escaped first moment I got. Malik is terrifying. I have had enough scars and bruises for a lifetime. I just want to be free of this. We both do, I know that. But we have to find a way to get Yuugi out of here. I can handle Malik's torture, and I know you and Akefia can handle Bakura's. But they _hate_ the Pharaoh with a passion. Yuugi is going to be in so much trouble, they're going to...they're going to be ever so cruel Ryou, we can't let him suffer as we are."

"I know Marik. But right now we are out of options. We can't just walk over there and open the door, and Bakura trusts me about as far as he can throw me, there is no way I'll be allowed in that room any time soon. We need to tell Yuugi it will be okay, and show him we're fine...I just...I feel so bad he's involved in this now. With me, he's my dark half, he's been tormenting me for so many years, I should be able to control him by now. And...no offence but Malik is the anger and hatred from you. We should be the only ones allowed to suffer by their hands, not bring Yuugi...or Yami...or anyone. They're innocent in this!"

Bakura looked up, and both Marik and Ryou fell silent, working on their given tasks. Marik shot Ryou a soft glare and Ryou said nothing.

When Bakura went back to his conversation, Marik rolled his eyes.

"I know Ryou, I know. We have to deal with the hand we get. Malik's starting to trust me more. I mean I've not tried escaping for a while. We need to gain their trust enough, to be able to see and talk to Yuugi. Okay? I know you're angry, I'm angry too. It's not fair, but we can't fight against them. We're not strong enough"

Ryou groaned softly before nodding.

"I know Marik I know, I'm sorry. I just...I feel so useless" Marik rubbed the others shoulder, before returning to cutting the vegetables.

"I am too Ryou, we'll find away, I know we will. Besides, now that Yuugi's here, Yami and Atemu may have better luck finding us, they were drawn to Yuugi rather quickly when they first arrived after all."

"You're right, we can hope anyway"


	10. Possession and Obsession

Shadows lingered throughout the city, darkness silent, hanging. Things were different, though it was not obvious to the general public, Yuugi's friends could certainly sense it, but it was far more obvious in Yami and Atemu.

They were focusing their entire time on finding their lost friend, searching newspapers and police records. They barely slept, barely ate, and had started getting impatient with one another. Yami had stopped returning home. Out hunting for Yuugi constantly, searching every alleyway and place where the spirit of the ring could be holed up. Days turned into weeks, and Yami was getting furious. When he was home he was pacing, or muttering angrily to himself. Trying to get a connection with the Puzzle was proving no luck either, it kept moving around, there was no way he could try and trace it, and look for Yuugi at the same time.

Atemu, who seemed to be more calm, was trying every other avenue, with the Puzzle gone there was no way he could use anything to help this problem. He had very limited knowledge about the technology of this world, and even help from his friends proved to be useless. The Spirit of the Ring, was well and truly hidden.

But one night seemed to be the worst.

Joey and Tea were working overtime, and Duke was out on a date, so it was only Tristan, Yami and Atemu. Tristan was out working on his bike, and Yami and Atemu were both trying to research any other leads.

"Are you sure you have not found anything else?" Yami groaned as he looked through the papers.

Atemu shook his head, looking through a couple of newspapers.

"I found this information about strange sightings in the upper district of the city, but you have already searched there, and it could easily be brushed off as something else-"

"But there's got to be more!" Yami slammed his fists on the table, Atemu kept calm but it was obvious he was startled by Yami's outburst.

"We're doing all that we can Yami, we will find him" He moved to stand, to try and calm him, but Yami turned to him angrily.

"He is with our enemy, the two that hate us more than anything! They will take all their rage out on him! We have put him into the firing line. He...I miss him. To know we can't protect him, something that I've done for years. I just feel...I feel so useless."

Atemu sighed, giving a soft nod.

"I understand, but Yuugi is strong. There is no way he will let them win easily. He will put up a fight, and he's with Ryou and Marik now, he can protect them. We know he is not weak, let's not insult him by assuming he cannot look after himself"

Yami froze, before giving a soft sigh.

"You're right, he has strong spirit. He will be able to hold on while we search for him. I know, I just...I wish it did not happen. I wish I was able to protect him, like when he was my Hikari, he does not need me any more. It does make me feel...kind of useless"

Atemu smiled, and placed a hand on his shoulder. "But he still cares for you, without you he seems more panicked. Just because he has grown, does not mean you are any less important to him."

"Thank you Atemu, sorry I got angry. It's just...I should not have turned to you. We will work together, we will find him"

"Of course we will, and we can work together, we will find him quicker"

-x-

It had been at least three weeks since Yuugi had been locked in that room. Ryou found himself staring whenever he was free, he wanted in, he wanted to see Yuugi.

He had heard the screams, the tortured pains at night when Bakura or Malik went in...he had no idea why they went in, why they wanted to talk to him, but it was obvious there was torture involved. However they didn't come out unscathed.

Numerous times he had to treat bite wounds, and scars. Yuugi fought back, and he seemed brutal from the wounds. At least he could defend himself.

Ryou gave a soft cough, as he approached Malik, lazing on his usual armchair.

Bakura was out with Akefia, and Marik was asleep in Malik's bedroom. This was probably his best time to see if he could check on Yuugi. He knew Malik had a soft spot for him...he hated the idea...but he could use that to his advantage. It was the only way he was going to get a chance.

Malik looked up from the papers he was reading, another bunch of Marik's crude translations about the magic book he knew very little about.

"Why Sweetheart~ How may I help you?" He purred happily, and Ryou gave a soft sigh.

"I want to see Yuugi, please. I wont do anything...I just...just want to make sure...m...please" Malik stirred at that, putting the papers down.

"I can do anything you want! In return. Just...please. I will do anything, I promise. I wont tell Bakura, it...it will just be between you and me, I promise. I just have to see him, please...I'm begging you."

Malik sighed, before smirking.

"Fine, but you must address me as Master from now on, and do whatever I want~ Without hesitation. Do we have a deal Sweetheart?"

Ryou winced, but he could see Yuugi...he could...it was worth it, it had to be.

"Yes, of course, whatever you want. I will do it Master, please" Malik's smirk grew at the use of the title, and he stood up, moving to the door.

"You have 10 minutes, I will time you. No more, no less. You're lucky I like you sweetheart, otherwise this wouldn't be happening"

With that the door was opened, and Ryou slipped in. The minute he saw Yuugi, all battered and bruised, he let out a sob. _Yuugi...he...he was hurt, it was his fault_  
The other male stirred, and glanced up.

"R...Ryou? Y...y...you ok?" He winced in pain as he turned, and Ryou collapsed down to his level.

"I'm sorry! I'm so so sorry, this is all my fault...I...I had the chance...t...to stop him...a...and I failed you! I...I failed you Yuugi. You've done so so much for me, and...and I can't repay you! I...I just bring more trouble and pain to you...I...I am so useless" He touched Yuugi's face, before bowing his head, tears flowing more freely.

Yuugi's eyes widened, and he gripped Ryou's hands.

"I am the one who used you as bait, I am the one who made it easy for these monsters to take you. Do not blame yourself Ryou, don't fall back into the obedient Ryou he wants you to be. You escaped, you gained independence. He is the monster, they are the only ones to blame. Not you, not Marik. Never you and Marik. Do not blame yourselves. Never blame yourselves" He felt Yuugi's hands on his shoulders, and he sighed softly. Yuugi, friendly, trusting Yuugi. Always happy, always full of spirit. Always able to calm him down. He was right, he was so right. But he had given up his freedom when he disobeyed. He had put Yuugi in danger. This...this was his fault in the end.

Tears were running down his cheeks, but all Yuugi could do was smile at him.

"It's okay, we'll get out of here. I'll get you and Marik out of here, I promise. I can handle anything they throw at me. It's nothing, as long as I know you are safe. I was so worried about the pair of you, and what those monsters were putting you through. It was all my fault, please never think it was yours. You've been fighting for so...so long against him...against them. I wanted to give you safety, a normal life. I wanted to show you...how life is meant to be...without fear...without worry. I'm so sorry Ryou"

He was about to reply, when Malik opened the door.

"10 minutes up, get out Sweetheart. Bakura will be back soon." Ryou turned back to Yuugi, who gave a soft smile, before he turned away from the door once more. He stood up, and sighed. If only there was more he could do.

When he was out of the room, Malik locked the door.

"Thank you" Ryou muttered, rubbing his arm.

"You didn't have to let me see him, I appreciate it" He gave him a soft smile, and Malik froze, before rubbing the back of his neck and giving a soft _tis a'right_, before turning on his heel. To Ryou it looked like the beginnings of a blush forming on his face.

"Start cooking, Bakura will be back soon with Akefia. They were on a rather taxing scouting mission, and will both be hungry" Ryou nodded softly, and turned on his heel. At lease he got to see Yuugi, he was fine...well as fine as could be given the circumstances. He could relax a bit, now that he knew he was alright. Even if it was brief.

-x-

When Bakura returned with Akefia, he noticed something different. Dark tendrils again, this time darker...stronger. Bakura had been using shadow magic...

Akefia was half carrying him into the house, and sat him on the sofa. Malik frowned looking over him.

"Well seems like you got into a bit of trouble" Bakura coughed, and shook his head.

"We need to move, I had a confrontation with the Spirit of the Puzzle. He doesn't know his full power without the Puzzle, so I managed to get away with only minor damage. But he's close. I shook him off, I doubt he could follow us, but still. We need to pack up and leave, now!"

Malik didn't hesitate, pushing himself up. "I'll grab the Pharaoh's light half and Marik, you'll have to deal with Ryou, I can't transport four people at once without exhausting myself fully. So glad we have the items in transport"

Bakura nodded, pushing himself up. And Malik grabbed the book Marik was translating, along with the papers before shoving them into a bag. With that he grabbed Marik and barged into the room Yuugi was in, making sure to grip onto him as well.

"I'll meet you at the new place, you can make your own way right?" Bakura nodded, and was about to grab Akefia and Ryou, when the door burst open. It was Yami...and he looked furious.

"Shit" Malik muttered, before he disappeared as Yami ran towards Yuugi. The Spirit of the Puzzle cursed, before turning to Bakura, who tried to use Shadow Magic, and managed to only transport himself. Akefia and Ryou were left, and Yami launched for Akefia.

Ryou had to think quickly, and put himself in front of Akefia, causing Yami to freeze.

"Ryou...I can at least save you. I'm sorry, I'm sorry I put you at risk because of these monsters!" He punched Akefia hard, causing him to fall to the ground. Ryou stepped forward.

"Yami please! He's not our enemy, please don't hurt him! He's in the same boat as me. He was brought here against his will by Bakura. Please understand! He has done nothing"

But Yami wasn't listening, and just as he was about to launch for Akefia once more, Atemu pushed the door open, obviously out of breathe.

"I missed him Atemu, I'm so sorry. He was so close, but we have Ryou. He's here" Atemu moved towards Ryou, kneeling down beside him. As they were both focused on him, Akefia tried to crawl away, but was stopped by Yami.

"And we have one of them anyway. He can tell us the way"

-x-

Everything went so fast, it was a blur. Ryou was practically carried home by Atemu, and Akefia was dragged roughly by Yami. When they arrived home, Tea ran forward.

"Oh Ryou, Ryou you're ok." She pulled him into a tight hug, and Ryou clung to her. He...he was safe again, he...he was away from Bakura...and Malik...b...but Yuugi and Malik.

However, attention turned to Akefia, who tried to step back but was stopped by Joey and Tristan.

"So this is the bastard huh? We know exactly how to deal with you. Let's give him a peace of our mind huh?" Ryou broke from Tea, and stood in front of him.

"This is not Bakura, do not hurt him. This is...my Egyptian counterpart, Akefia. But please! Listen. He was controlled by the Spirit of the Ring, just as I was. He was an unwilling host, and brought here against his will. You forgave me for my crimes, for being possessed by Bakura, please, please he was in the exact same boat. You can't hurt him, please. If he does anything wrong, I am to blame, I will take full blame. I need him, I...I have to have...he's...he protected me so much."

Yami frowned, and Atemu stepped forward.

"We trust you Ryou, if this is your judgement, then we will let you protect him. But the minute he steps out of line we have to take action, you understand this?" Ryou nodded, relaxing softly. They were nothing like Bakura and Malik, they...they listened to him.

"But Yuugi? Marik? You didn't find them?" Tea frowned, turning to Yami, who rubbed the back of his neck.

"The counterpart of Marik...grabbed Yuugi and Marik before I could do anything to stop him. The Spirit of the Ring was obviously not strong enough to transport these two away, and just managed to leave himself. But we have one, we have Ryou. We should be grateful we managed to save one, we can get the others. I know we can"

Ryou gave a soft smile, before he gasped turning to Akefia.

"You know where they were going to, right? You knew so much about them Akefia" Akefia nodded softly, reaching for Ryou who frowned and knelt down.

"I...I...I'm not safe here...p...protect me" He whispered. "I will tell you...b...but I can't...n...not to them"

"It's okay, they're friends, they're here to help us" Ryou frowned, glancing back to the others, Atemu was glaring at him...Atemu...this was his worst enemy, his rival. Who nearly destroyed his whole kingdom...and he was telling him to trust him...he had brought Akefia to the home of his enemy, the person who killed his village, the son of his worst enemy. They were not his friends...Akefia was right.

He had never seen Atemu act impulsively, he was always patient, always kind. Yami always acted on his emotions, but Atemu was like a true royal. Calm and collected during the most complicated of times. This was a difficult situation.

"They're staying by the docks, they have a warehouse there. I could not tell you the number, but it is at least four or five down." He whispered, still gripping tightly to Ryou. Ryou placed a hand on him, trying to comfort him, to reassure him.

"He says they're by the docks, warehouse four or five. Better be quick, they know you have Akefia." Yami turned to Atemu, who sighed and looked back to Joey and Tristan.

"I will stay and keep an eye on Akefia and Ryou, Tristan, Joey, Duke, Yami. You four will be fine on your own, correct?" Yami turned to the others, and they smirked at each other, before dashing out of the house.

"I am going to call Ishizu, and keep her updated on the situation" Tea frowned, lifting her phone, and walking through into the other room.

"Ryou, can you let me talk to Akefia alone?" Atemu questioned, looking towards the whitette, causing Akefia to grip to him tighter.

Ryou had never said no to a request by Atemu before. Atemu was always reasonable. Why did he want to talk to Akefia alone?

"I can't let you do that. Anything you can say to Akefia, you can say to me. I hope you understand Atemu." Atemu frowned, but gave a soft nod.

"Of course, if that is your wish. It was just to tell you, Thief King, that if you do cause any trouble, any hassle, I will kill you, without a second thought. I do not care if Ryou is fond of you, you are in my domain now. The minute you step one foot out of line, I will not hesitate to end you." Akefia gave a soft bow of his head, and gripped Ryou tighter.

"He understands, I understand as well. I will take full blame if he causes any problems. But I trust him, and because I trust him, I want him to stay here. This was my home was it not? Do I not get a say in who I bring in?" Atemu nodded, before standing up.

"Of course Ryou, but you cannot blame me for not trusting someone who broke into my home and caused so many problems for me and my country. I understand your fondness, but I have known him longer, you will have to forgive me for not jumping for joy at this request of yours. But because I respect you, and trust you. I will give you this chance, but he only gets one chance off me. Anything else will result in me destroying him. Or getting Yami to do it. Be warned, I have no patience for thieves and villains."

With that he turned to walk away, and Ryou sighed, turning to Akefia.

"We're safe now though. I will protect you, just as you protected me. Come on, if we go to my room they tend not to disturb me when I am in there. You'll have a chance to rest. These are my friends, I trust they'll be fine when they get to know you"

-x-

Yami and the others arrived at the warehouse fairly quickly. It was definitely occupied. This was his chance, he could sense Yuugi, he was definitely in here. Finally, he would get his precious Hikari back, Yuugi would be safe once more, and he would be able to bring down the two that had tormented him for so long. But their shadow magic...he hadn't thought this through. But there was no turning back now, if he missed this chance, there was no telling how long it would be before he was able to see Yuugi again.

Turning to the others, he gave a nod, pointing to stairs leading up to a door. They had the element of surprise, and both Malik and Bakura. The pair had used shadow magic, they would be weaker. There was a chance they could stop this all with one blow.

Yami stepped in first, looking around, before quietly slipping down the stairs, Duke, Joey and Tristan following. He could see Yuugi, as Bakura was pinning him against the wall, obviously angry with losing Akefia and Ryou.

The Spirit of the Puzzle saw red, he surged forward, slamming Bakura to the ground brutally, causing the other to gasp in pain. Malik snarled, moving to grab Marik before Joey ran forward and pulled Marik away, while Duke and Tristan helped Yuugi up.

"Well well spirit, how nice to see you again" Malik snarled, and Yami had to dodge as a surge of shadow magic nearly struck him. Without thinking he turned to the others, before diving towards them. All of a sudden, a surge of energy shot through him, and the five of them landed in the centre of the main room in the house. Yami collapsed just as Atemu ran through. They were _home_


	11. Nightmares and Day Dreams

The cold moonlight passed through a crack in the drawn curtain, causing Ryou to stir.

It had only been a week since he was rescued, along with the others, and as expected he was having trouble adjusting to life back with his friends. The thought of Bakura out there, watching, waiting, causing shivers to roll down his spine.

His dreams were spoiled and his waking moments were haunting. He dared not leave the apartment, and would not be without someone at all times.

For Yuugi it was a huge step backwards. They had spent years working to help Ryou escape Bakura's hauntings. They spent countless sleepless nights, comforting their friend and trying to show that everything would be okay, but here he was, worse than before. The tortured screams travelled through the building at night, as nightmares of pain and torture cursed Ryou's thoughts. Keeping the group of friends awake, including this night, when the nightmares seemed to be particularly bad.

Yuugi gave a soft sigh, sipping the cup of coffee. Tea was busy making more, while Tristan and Duke were both asleep at the table.

Another loud yell, panicked and hurried jolted them awake, Tea almost spilling the hot water. Yuugi gave a soft groan.

"Was it as bad as this when you helped him previously?" Atemu frowned, glancing to the others. Tea gave a shake of her head and Yuugi muttered a soft no.

"Bakura did not have a physical form, so Ryou suffered mental torture. But because he had suffered it for so long...It was just breaking him from routine. Now though...Bakura is still out there, and they seem to be connected by something. Suffering physical and mental anguish, along with Bakura haunting him, it can't be good for him"

"I agree" A voice at the door caused them to turn, but the shadow figure stepped further back, not wanting to draw attention to himself. Atemu grew more alert, moving to stand beside Yuugi.

"How long have you been hiding in the shadows _thief_?" The last word was punctuated with disdain, but Akefia only shrunk back further, uttering a soft 'nevermind'.

Tea took the chance to step forward, offering a soft smile to Akefia.

"Is Ryou keeping you awake as well?" She kept her voice low, obviously trying not to threaten him. They had seemed to form a shaky friendship over the course of the week. Akefia was starting to open up to her a bit more, which was good considering he was the closest to Ryou, and to get Ryou to open up they would need to start trusting Akefia more.

Akefia gave a soft shrug, before looking around.

"I was just down to get something cold for Ryou, he is sweating a lot, I did not expect you all to be down here"

"The house is ours" Atemu shot back, and Yami nodded. The atmosphere was getting rather tense. Yuugi glared at the pair of them.

"Yami, Atemu, come see how Marik is doing with me" The younger offered a soft smile to the two, before practically dragging the pair away.

When Yuugi and the others left the room, Tristan stood up, giving a large yawn.

"There is a new basin in the garage that you can fill with water. I'll go get it for you." Akefia gave a soft nod, stepping further into the kitchen. He knew he wasn't welcomed here, they weren't his friends. Sometimes it felt worse than living with the demons. But at the same time, he knew Ryou would be safe, and cared for here.

Even Joey was awake now, looking over to Akefia. He knew how Atemu and Yami felt, they had been speaking to him about it. But Ryou, and Yuugi both seemed to trust the other, so it was only fair they gave him a chance. He after all, was only working with orders from Ryou's dark half, the Spirit of the Ring. Technically the Thief King had been in the exact same situation as Ryou.

"Why don't you give us a list of what you need? We can help you out with this" He gave Akefia a confident smile, and Akefia couldn't help a soft smile back, before nodding.

While they helped Akefia out, Yuugi made sure to take Yami and Atemu into their room first.

"What was that about?! Akefia is here to help Ryou. There's no need to be so hostile towards him" He snapped, glaring at the pair of them.

"Once a thief, always a thief. We can't exactly trust him, we know nothing about his relationship with Bakura. Me and Atemu work together to overcome situations, who is to say Akefia is not working as a spy for the Spirit of the Ring!" Yami snorted, folding his arms.

"Yami is right Yuugi. I lived in the same time as him, I saw the destruction and terror he caused my people. I can't just forgive and forget, and I do not believe he has changed. We are relying on Ryou's word. Not that I do not trust Ryou, but he has been through such an awful experience, where the only option he could rely on, is someone whos character should be judged in the first place. Akefia showed Ryou a small amount of kindness, and Ryou clung to that. You know Ryou tries to see the good in everyone just as well as we do"

Yuugi glared at them both, and rolled his eyes.

"Ryou trusts them, and he's our guest. At least be civil to him"

Both Atemu and Yami looked at each other, before Atemu sighed.

"For you Yuugi, I will be civil. But that is all I can be, please understand."  
Yami however, gave a loud sigh, before throwing his hands up in the air.

"Fine! But if he betrays us, don't be surprised" Yuugi nodded, he knew he was asking a lot of the pair. Akefia had been a thorn in Atemu's side for millennia, and Yami was protective of Atemu just as he was protective of Yuugi. They had fought against Bakura and Akefia for so long, they had been enemies for so long. But he needed to show Ryou that he could feel safe here, and that meant accepting Akefia.

Yuugi led Atemu and Yami to Marik's room in silence, giving a quiet knock he pushed the door open carefully. The first thing the trio noticed, was that Marik wasn't in his bed. Scanning the room, he noticed one of the cupboard doors move ever so slightly.

He nodded over to Atemu, who was closer to the cupboard. He opened the door carefully, causing Marik to flinch and wake up with a gasp.

The wounds and bruises were healing, but it was obvious that mentally Marik was suffering greatly, just as Ryou was.

"Sorry for disturbing you Marik, we just wanted to check to see if you are ok, and when we didn't see you in the bed, we got worried."

Marik glanced over to the bed, before shaking his head.

"Malik sleeps in the bed, I only sleep in the bed if Malik says"

"But Malik is not here, this is your bed Marik, You can sleep here when you want."

Marik gave another soft shake of his head.

"Malik and me are connected. He can still cause me pain, he speaks to be about how me and Ryou made a huge mistake, how we need to go back. He...he misses me...I have been so bad, I need to go back"

Yuugi took a few steps towards him, before kneeling down beside him.

"Marik, look at me! We can help you, we can try and block him from your mind, sever the connection." Yami gave a nod, moving closer to Marik.

"We can help you, please let us." Marik shook his head at that, trying to close the cupboard door again.

"No no no, Malik will be annoyed. I...I have to keep him happy. He is already so angry, I made a mistake, need to go back to him."

Marik turned away, before muttering something under his breathe. Yuugi stood up and gave a soft sigh, letting Marik close the cupboard again quickly. They could hear quiet mutterings from the other. This was far worse than Yuugi had seen with Ryou, there was no way he would be able to help Marik so quick. They needed to get that demon out of his head.

"We have to get rid of the connection somehow, there has to be a way. Marik is not going to get a break from Malik unless we do. I feel so sorry for both of them. With the way they treated me...I would not wish that trouble on them at all, to know I suffered, only half of what the three of them suffered...I mean Akefia was just as trapped as the pair of them." Atemu gave a soft sigh, rubbing the back of his neck.

"To sever the connection, we need access to the Puzzle, that has enough Shadow Magic to help us. But that means, trying to track down those two again. After our first assault there is no way they are going to be as careless. They are going to be well hidden."

"But Bakura and Malik still want Ryou and Marik, now I'm not saying using them as bait as last time, but there has to be a way to bring them out of hiding"

Yuugi looked to Atemu and Yami again, before giving a soft sigh.

"They are drawn to two things, their other halves...and shadow magic. If we could make something large enough to draw their attention..."

Atemu shook is head.

"Impossible without the items, shadow magic itself is really hard to control. It is unpredictable, and unstable. Anyone using it has a chance to get infected by the energy. I witnessed it during my time in Egypt. Creatures of darkness, how it manipulated the minds of the once pure and innocent. I would rather not see anyone use it at all. It is a dangerous energy we are nowhere near understanding."

The three began their walk back to the main room, noticing the others helping Akefia...well helping as much as they could. Tea was trying to talk to Akefia, but he was still avoiding questions and attention in general. It was obvious how uncomfortable he was in this situation.

"So, how is he?" Tristan queried as he looked up at the three, causing Yuugi to sigh loudly.

"There is no way he's coming back from this easily. We need to sever the connection between Marik and his dark half. Otherwise he's just going to be haunted by the monster. We need a trap to lure Bakura or Malik in...but we can't use Ryou or Marik as bait. We can't risk losing them to those monsters again, not considering what they'll do if they do catch them."

Akefia took the chance to look over to Yuugi, before glancing to the stairs.

"We can use me, I can lure them in. It doesn't matter if they catch me. I know Ryou would be against it...but if it is to get him better, and get Bakura's voice out of my head, then I am more than happy to volunteer. After all, Bakura is just as drawn to me as he is to Ryou. There is no way he would resist trying to catch me, to punish me for escaping, and to help Ryou escape. I have not left this house yet, I can feel his presence now and again. I will volunteer."

Yuugi frowned, stepping forward, before giving a soft sigh.

"If you're sure about this, we can have Yami use as much shadow-magic as possible to protect you. We just need to lure them in enough, Yami you'll be strong enough, right?"

The other gave a shrug, glancing between the group.

"Bakura and Marik's dark half have both had far more time to master using shadow-magic. I am not too sure I will be able to overpower them. But as long as they have their Millennium Items on them, I could possibly draw power from them. After all, as the Spirit of the Puzzle I do feel connected to all the items, though of course the Puzzle gives me the most energy. Perhaps I will have enough strength to draw one of them in...even both. If you're willing to risk your freedom on a chance" He muttered the last sentence, turning to Akefia, who gave a nod.

"Of course, anything to see Ryou better, and to not have him risk his own freedom. I am more than happy and willing to help out"

-x-

The day in question was an absolute dreary day, Yami had been practising his magic, and they had a far stronger plan of how things were going to happen.

Akefia would head out quietly, slip out the back to make it seem like he was escaping. Before that, Yuugi and Yami would head out seeming to go in the opposite direction. It was strange to do all this preparation, but there was no doubt Bakura and Malik knew where their house was, and were probably keeping tabs on what was going to happen.

They kept Atemu and the others in the apartment, to make sure they wouldn't try to go after Ryou and Marik while too many people were gone. It was risky, far too risky. But if they could get at least one of the demons trapped, they'd only have to worry about one left, and perhaps get information, or at the very least have a Millennium Item on their side for once.

Akefia leapt over the rooftops quietly, constantly looking around, checking his surroundings. He was following the path the others had planned out. They had one shot at this, if Bakura or Malik played into their hands, and he was sure Bakura would. After all there had to be a reason why Bakura dragged him from his own time period.

There was no doubt he was terrified of the demon, after all the hell and pain he caused him, but he had to do this. For Ryou's sake.

So he kept running, constantly looking, they hadn't a plan for if Bakura or Malik didn't show up...but they didn't really need one really. They'd just try again another time.

Well he assumed. He was never able to predict this group, especially The Spirit of the Puzzle. Unlike the Pharaoh, who would always think of the needs of the people, the other was focused more on pleasing Yuugi and the Pharaoh. No matter what, Yuugi and The Pharaoh came first in his mind.

He came to a pause at the edge of a building, something caught his eye, a shadow.

There was no time to think, he yelled _'now'_ automatically, and a mist of shadow surrounded himself and the figure, before Yami appeared from thin air, it was surprising how quickly Yami had mastered shadow magic.

With the boost of power from the figures Millennium Item, he ripped the ring from the others neck, before throwing it to Akefia without thinking. With that he summoned chains of pure magic, and secured Bakura.

This was it, they caught him! He was strangely predictable, Bakura would never usually put himself in such a risky situation. Something seemed different as well, he was cursing and struggling as predicted, but the veins of magic had grown more prominent. Bakura didn't look too good either. In fact he had bruises and scars all over his arms. This was far different than how he looked when he and Ryou left Bakura.

When Yuugi caught up to them, Yami hauled Bakura up.

"I'll take him back, I'll need the ring to draw from it's power" Akefia looked down to the Ring. He could just take it, use it's power... but no. This was for Ryou, he needed to do it for him.

He handed the ring back, taking another glance at Bakura before sighing.

"Right, we'll walk home. Make sure Ryou doesn't see him. He's been doing better, the last thing we need is for him to..." He gave a soft sigh.

Yami took that as his time to leave, grabbing Bakura once more, before turning.

"You'll be fine with the thief...?" Yami began, but a glare from Yuugi caused him to backtrack.

"Anyway, I'll make sure he's far away...be safe, and I still don't trust you thief!" With that Yami disappeared with Bakura, leaving Yuugi and Akefia on the rooftop alone.

"I'm sorry about how they treat you, I know you're trying."

Akefia shrugged, helping Yuugi down easily.

"I understand the hatred, I was awful to the Pharaoh and his people, Zorc and the Spirit controlled me for so long, blamed the Pharaoh for killing my home. I wanted revenge, I was obsessed with it. When I was in the Shadow Realm...I was content. I was back with my people, in the town I grew up. True it was in shadows, but it was home. Relaxing. Then Bakura had to come back, had to take control again. Of course he can't leave it alone. He's power hungry. I just...I don't want to fight now. I had my turn, and the Pharaoh won fair and square. I just want to get away from this place...it's hell."

He gave a soft sigh, and Yuugi frowned.

"But you're here now, and if it wasn't for you Ryou would have had to endure a lot worse at the hands of Bakura. You were willing to risk your own freedom to help us as well. It's good you're here Akefia."

The rest of the walk home was mostly in silence, with Yuugi stopping at a store to get a few things. Akefia kept by his side as he explained modern technology to him, even let him pick something out to take back to Ryou.

The minute they got home Akefia started acting more on edge.

"The magic here...it's far stronger. You have Bakura, Ryou and me...as well as the ring. Something is wrong, something is very wrong I can sense it." The others turned to Akefia, who looked up the stairs.

"Is Ryou okay? There's no way he would not be able to notice it." Akefia moved to go up the stairs, and Yuugi turned to Atemu, who was standing at the door.

"Something is wrong with Bakura, he seems very sick for some strange reason. We think Malik had something to do with this, but of course the thief is far too stubborn to talk. We have Ishizu here looking over the place. She knows more about Shadow-magic than any of us."

"Marik knows far more" A soft voice came from the stairs, and Ryou stepped down. It was the first time he had stepped out of his bedroom for months.

"If Bakura is here, I need to see him. If he is ill I want to comfort him. I know what he did to me, the nightmares he caused. But there is a bond between us, Akefia feels it too. There is...there is something really wrong with Bakura, we're not used to this negative energy...well all shadow-magic is negative energy, but nothing like this."

Atemu sighed, before walking to the door.

"Fine, but you're not going to like this"

Atemu led Yuugi and the others into the spare room, where Yami and Ishizu were standing around Bakura, who was looking far worse.

"We need Marik here. He knows far more than I do. I cannot assess his condition well enough. This is something I haven't seen before."

Yuugi glanced back to the door, before Ryou stepped forward.

"I'll go, he probably wont listen to me, but we were together through a lot of this. He may be able to give some advice."

"I'll come with you Ryou, he is my brother after all" Ishizu muttered, before offering a soft smile, and Ryou gave a nod, that was if Marik was in a well enough condition to talk...if anything at all.


End file.
